Escape the Okie Zone

"So why am I posting this here? Because nobody gives a shite in my real life, and I don't want to subject my own website's visitors to my personal problems. Besides, you've been hungry for comments, I hear."

We give a shite, Leigh, except for Bubbanon!
I think personal stories are sometimes fascinating to others as we let others into our lives. Your website is fantastic, Leigh Anne and I appreciate all your help with mine! I feel with your website, mine and when all of us bloggers come together, we can really make an impact on the government as to making serious changes. I talked to a young union rep that is lobbying for workers. We talked about how unions are effective for getting things done and not let management take advantage of workers. In England and Australia, they have the labor party which is like our Democratic party, except that they really have the support of the workers and support workers. I'm realizing that there are many of us with similar opinions about our freedoms being taken away and working for a good wage is becoming a thing of the past. From watching Oprah, yesterday, I realized that it is not only me that is becoming very passionate about where our government is going. I was friends with Drew, Cameron, and Christina in this common goal, this common collective. This desire to still be up at 4 am and talk to others like I am now and writing so you will also not feel alone with this passion. If you, the readers also become involved as I'm sure many of you are, we will become the common collective conciousness to change!

Leigh Anne, Do you think I get too personal on my website? It's nice to know that there are people out there that give a shit. I feel good when I meet friends that have read my website for example, John,(whom I met at Lumpy's a couple of years ago) has been keeping up with my adventures and him mentioning parts of the story that made an impact on him, for example the fight at Lumpy's (by the way, I went by the place and Steve was nice about saying that Chris had banned me from the place for being the victim of an emotionally disturbed customer that was previously banned from the place for continued violence and agression. They should have kept out violent people for the safety of the customers. ) When I meet a new reader, it excites me that they also are excited about the stories..It's sometimes like a life or discovery is happening to you and others (friends hopefully) are sharing this...

"And speaking of comments, I should like to hear more about Muffy!"

I want to write more about her fine attributes such as her zest for fighting for reproductive rights. She has many concerns for the government and got me more involved in politics. We both love to eat up the news and CNN together having voracious appetites. She is one extremely smart cooky and always keep me on my toes. She actually told me that my writing has been improving and flowing better. I told her that writing improves with practice just like swimming laps each day! (That reminds me that I need to swim some more laps at the apts close by house before it gets too cold. We are still having days in the low 80's). She just wishes that I wasn't obsessed with this website but I told her that it's much healthier to obsess about it than wasting my time obsessing about bipolar born again pagan women!

"for Your Botticelli maiden is a fine diamond in a world filled with limestone, and you and I both know how prophetic and exciting she can be if there's somebody making her happy and not the other way around...(Hats off to Sir Hiram Walker and his delightful candy cane libation...apologies fothcoming)"

I guess I sometimes make her happy when I feed her or make her laugh or just keep my mouth shut. I wish that I could entertain her as Charly Roads does. He interviews these famous people and usually always has good rapport with them. I'd like to start interviewing future famous people for this website like it's an informative magazine! My site will at least give these folks 10 or 15 minutes of fame. Im trying to put pics on it at least of Shwagstock but they might piss off Muffy (just innocent flirting). I'm still intimidated by computers and don't even know how to transfer the disc from Walgreens onto here!

Well, Leigh Anne, I hope that Hiram Walker doesn't give you a headache in the morning. I'll edit this essay tomorrow. It's 4:30 now!

I just saw the end of the interview with the daily TV shrink, Dr. Phil. They were at the Crawford Ranch. It makes me want to puke!
Phil sure made the Bush family look perfect and to look like a fantastic stable Dad (who is one step away from his next drink. They didn't even get into him being an alcoholic father till he was 40!) It makes me have hope for all ADD fathers at least and makes me think that at least he's a good dad, but a shitty president just like I would be with my own ODD, organizational deficit disorder.
Laura said that he is a slob and disorganized. She complained about him bringing in mud into the ranch house. Those are the symptoms of ADD. I'm actually like that but I would never run for the president. If I did, I would get some sharp lawyer like Edwards rather than an old fart like Cheney to be my valet and help prompt me about how to answer questions! Wait, I could handle Ms. Barrymore as my valet! I would enjoy letting her decide if I'm making any fashion faux pas! (i.e. wearing the wrong color Polynesian shirt into the "Buzzard Beach" in Westport)

Wow Drew Barrymore is on Oprah and she is HOT! (She sure is sofa king cute, I just want her to have my babies and take me to Australia! I can tell her that Ive got property on the beach only 3 miles walk on the beach from Surfer's Paradise, Queenland! She would break that spell that the pagan witch cast on me!) And Drew seems to be about the maturity and physical attributes to at least have a fun fling with a charismatic individual as myself! (Muffy is rolling her eyes at me now in my narcissistic fantasies!)

Talk about robo babes! After Drew there were Cameron Diaz and Christina Aguillera all concerned about registering young voters that have become so apathetic thinking they won't vote because all politicians are dirty or corrupt. Cameron exactly mirrors my concerns how scary it will be next year if we have another 4 years of this country's freedoms being taken away! She said how the government will make it to have reproductive rights taken away and no concern for a woman's right when she is raped. I wish there was some hot babe to talk about lessening the stigma and penalties for putting Marijuana and flax seed with omega 3 fatty acids in your oatmeal when it has the ability to be that cheap! Wow, imagine if some celeb went on her show and talked on her show stating that a joint is far less harmful (for driving) than a martini and needs to be legalized. It does not graduate to more harmful drugs!

(to be edited and continued later, just cant wait to get it out to all of my 5 readers!) Thinkin' about heading to Hudstones but the vibes were kind of negative esp. from the BT so I only left him 60 cents late last night. I might have left him over a dollar if he at least smiled. I'm sorry if he had a long evening. Who knows? I'm sure Muffy, who's a bartender will get angry at me for being so cheap! Women call you that even though your still paying for the evening! I'd love to call a woman cheap that won't take me out and leave a large tip! Don't get me started! I would love to see one of these people in the service industry that might have had a bad day or evening trade places with a teacher with a classroom full of children with behavior disorders! We have to pay taxes and don't get tax free tips. Many make several times a teachers salary! Unfortunately, they often don't get major medical :(.

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

I'm so obsessed with this website, that I can't wait to get back on here and talk to you, my audience, whether your vibes towards me are positive or negative. Of course, I prefer being around positive people but I feel a very strong need to educate ignorant people. But it feels so frustrating to get through to closeminded people that prefer to stay that way and often won't give you a word edgewise. They often get loud, angry, and potentially volatile to the point where it is safer to just walk away.

It is amazing how this election is so serious where we wake up in the middle of the night and worry about how George is flushing this beautiful land down the tubes! More overseas voters are registering. The two biggest reasons are George and Bush. They are embarassed to be part of the same country that he is president! At least 75% of the world hates Bush and wants him out of office more than any other president in history! The environment will become more and more polluted with more suburban sprawl (so people can live in the "country). Soon there will be suburbs and towns all the way Pauls Valley and past Guthrie on I-35! m The earth is warming up because of increased CO2, being a possible cause of a record amounts of hurricanes in the Carribean and Florida! Because of Bush, we are one of the few countries not participating in preventing global warming. I have voted Republican in the past, believe it or not, because as most bartenders know, I am fiscally conservative (tight). But now I realize how republicans have put us far more in debt while continuing to take away services to the people. Clinton put us out of debt for the first time in a generation and in 3 years we are back to being 200 billion in debt with jobs being flushed away to India! The only work is back breaking work for low wages that migrants coming in by the droves love to do. They are happy to just be here let alone any benefits. The normal entrepeneur working on his own cannot afford health coverage that won't even cover preexisting conditions.

Republicans (neo conservatives) say that they will give us more freedoms, but they will take those away as the ever wealthier CEOS love to keep the masses poor, ignorant and with freedoms gradually being chipped away. Big business wants us to conform, wear suits, go to church and be good little sheep to work at as close to minimum wage with no benefits. Bush represents all of what scared me about the Republican God when I moved to Oklahoma. Oklahoma is one of the poorest states in the country yet because Republicans (neo cons) were "smart" enough to get the pro gun, pro life , pro fundamentalist crowd this state will be a landslide for Dubya (how can one be for life and for guns at the same time?) Dubya knew to become a born again Bubbamentalist after his dad lost to Clinton. He realized Dad would have won if he had got the fundamentalist vote!

Ill continue this later, I'm tired now.

8/15
Speaking of nightmares...it was almost a relief ...an old pagan flame had turned old, fat and almost as ugly as her controlling mother who insisted on her aborting her 4th child from a 4th man who raped her...she has had a sad life and her anger with men has turned a once very beautiful girl into a haggard witch

....the nasty wiccan was actually civil with me and talked with me never wanting to give closure very angry at any type of response to talk with her
she claims that she has gone to the police action showing them this website that doesn't mention her name and innocent postcards from OZ..
..

she wrote a nasty comment on here saying how happy she was (living in her tiny house) married (?)...who was the sucker?

when I woke up I felt better, relieved that she talked to me even in her haggard state...she was unhappy in her marriage always wondering what it would have been like to have brought up her family ( including our love child (??) together

After Alene passed away December 31st, 94 its been hard for Garvald to have relationships, often showing his needy side having been spoiled by her and sleeping with her most of those 13 x 365 days. That comes out to at least 4 of those years sleeping, making love and cuddling. Someone that knew him and cared about him was suddenly taken away without any warning. How could he survive other than putting his efforts into the children of his freshman biology class. Their bright faces took his mind off of her. He started writing to organize his own feelings and often would talk to her and his mother feeling that they were his match makers in heaven.
He was angry at the fundamentalist preacher at the funeral for telling him where she was in heaven and not an angel. Occasionally, he would feel her presence wanting him to be taken care of for this one time for his soul to be on this earth. He wanted to believe but did not want any organized religion written by man to tell him the way things were.

He often struggled at his various middle school science teaching positions until he felt more of a niche and skill with emotionally challenged students. There were little signs along the way. He still went through many relationships trying to find his perfect woman.

He tuned into pagan thought and spirituality that mirrored many of his own feelings brought out in his writing when he finds intelligence, beauty and compassion with a young pagan girl that appears to be his soul mate.Actually she mysteriously found him on the psycho net. She had written to him and surely someone as young as here wouldn't be interested in him.
She was a psychic or at least claimed to be.
She had told him that "Garvald" had come out on the Ouija board long before they met. She and her mother would often play with the board.
Her daughter, who called him "Daddy",
was born on the same day Alene was born and that mysteriously, was about the same time the brief relationship ended.She and her mentor witch also much older than her pushed him into get an engagement ring. This born again pagan girl believed in him more than he did in himself and reached a state of happiness that he never had almost thinking that he would become a father.

He bonded with her son who often told him how he was looking forward to him being his father. His own father never could give him the love and acceptance that he desperately wanted so much. Garvald would often become verklempt (all choked up) at the idea of becoming a family man and not being alone again. It was all too good to be true. He did not deserve someone like her. When her mother came down to visit with the step dad it was all over. Mother dearest was cold and judgemental. She looked at a painting of Alene and remarked how closely her precious daughter looked at her. She presumed that was why this older man was marrying her daughter. The pagan girl told him of her very controlling ways.
"Why are you marrying this old man? He does not know plumbing or anything about keeping up a house."
They all and had a breakfast together. While her daughter was in the bathroom, her mother had to make sure she told him how her daughter was emotionally unstable and had to put away for a while. He wondered how this woman he was so in love with could have such a cruel mother??
The mother and the passive step dad left and Garvald was momentarily happy...
That Sunday afternoon, he saw her black cats inside his infinity after he leaving the top up. A popular break up song was on the radio. It was a bad omen.

"Hurricane Michelle was the 13th named storm and one of the strongest hurricanes of the 2001 Atlantic hurricane season. One of only four November Category 4 hurricanes, Michelle made landfall on south-central Cuba with winds of 140 mph, the strongest Cuban landfall since Hurricane Fox in the 1952 season. The hurricane brought torrential rains across its path from Central America through the Greater Antilles, killing 17 people and causing widespread damage." after it dissipated and destroyed every remnant of her love, all that was left was her ring that represents "infinity" ... "You're not it" she brutally told him in her last email and kept the engagement ring.

Long after it was over Garvald would often become depressed thinking how happy he was with her. It was more of a loss than with Alene..He then realized how time was so fleeting, so he pursued his writing as a hobby and desire to express his soul as a healthy release for all his pain . He would have a similar feeling, when he went swimming, bicycling, and surfing. He wrote on many notebooks, lost notes and poetry in cyber space ...He wrote on pieces of paper his ideas and angst. He was formulating an idea to put all of this together
into a magical book of his world. He would eventually have it written as a website and then a book, then share it with his world and the rest of the universe.

All the signs seemed to be telling him to get out his comfort zone or Okie Zone ...He started stretching his paradigms. He goes to Chicago to see a soon to be published author. He loved her but he left Chicago not making the effort to get a teaching job there almost afraid of the cold depressing winter there. He helps her with the idea of writing about oneself in the third person especially when her book was dealing with the physical and sexual abuse from her parents in Texas. A month after they break up, her book was accepted and she thanked him in the acknowledgements for helping her overcome her fears by writing it all in the third person.

When he comes back from Chicago, he has an interview with Kansas City Schools. They want him to teach children with behavior disorders. He has a job to go back to in Oklahoma but he sits in his car in Westport and asks the universe what should keep him in KC? A bar mate at the Buzzard Beach, Mark, tells him to check out First Fridays at Nelson's Museum of Art. He meets Muffy who introduces him to the world of politics and feminism. They go to fight for female reproductive rights on a bus trip to Washington D.C. She challenges him about his ADD and always keeps him on his toes especially if she wasn't fed, needed a cigarette, cannabis, or it was a week before "Aunt Flo".

In February, he finally gets the prescription for Adderall (she called it "Adda boy!" for the difference it made in the way Garvald could focus and get things done) It's like he has suddenly put glasses on and can see how he does not need to be overwhelmed with life's daily struggles. He wonders how he would have done those IEPS (individual education plans) without it! He feels that being a white male teacher, his African American administrator does not like him from the first day of school and he's sorry that he didn't follow his intuitions about her and her obsession with power so much that she has her staff and janitors spy on the teachers. To get her and the emotionally disturbed director off his back he turns in his resignation for the end of the year.

Garvald makes it a point to still finish the year well, developing his rapport with the parents to help improve the behavior of his students. He worked far better with the parents and he did his best to keep the principal away from his classroom as she only would undermine his authority. (more about the craziness of this school in later installments)

Garvald relaxes and recuperates from the emotionally strained year during the summer. He thinks the strain made his back a lot worse! Muffy introduces him to Lillian who shows him how to start his website. He sees light at the end of the tunnel when he realizes this book would be his own self actualization. This website and book will help him heal and discover what his talents are. He knows that when he reaches his peak, the engine is running and he has taken off, he will find his once and future schwagmaiden. He can see little ones in his magical place. Occasionally he had visions of these "responsibilities" running around his fantasy home in between Nimbin and Byron bay. He could see the coast from his large bedroom/studio window on the first floor and the blue mountain view from his upstairs balcony! ("Lifestyles of the "Rich and Infamous"). Will his once and future Schwagmaiden join him in the journey or will he find her at the end of his journey finding his real home.?

He saw this place and others in Byron Bay and Nimbin, Australia. He also imagined this magical place when he went to Schwagatopia.

When he finds his magical place and maiden, the book will be written and he will find peace and happiness with his new family perhaps in the land of OZ??

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

The following is a list of places where there exists a sizable hippy population, where there is tolerance towards hippies, where hippies are free to pursue their lifestyle with community support. Whether you're looking to visit or relocate, you can be sure there'll be places to stay, interesting things to see and do, and lots of other hippies in these places. Please note, most of these were reader contributions! If you know of any other places to add to this list please write to us.

Check out our Communal Living Forum for more info on communes!


Guys and Gals, lets check out all these places. I think that this will be the best way to recuperate from emotionally disturbed people,angry female emotionally disturbed directors,principals, ex gf's,Bubbas, Bubbannettes,(who have no tolerance for your ecentricities and desire to relax and campout!)...I notice lately after shwaggers and nudists have checked out my site, that the readership might have gone down to only Bubba, maybe Muffy, Buffy and a few others.

Dr. Dave has said that I would be best in an intellectual community open to free thought and far away from restrictive Bubbamentalism! Maybe the Okie zone, will be the base for these orbits further and further out of the comfort zone. I have my "Infiniti" and Ive lent out my Mazda to Golda (good platonic friend..you can't have enough female friends except when they won't come to bailing you out of jail)...thats a long story and I'll get into that about seeing one of my ex 7th grade Hispanic students from Jackson Middle School from a few years ago directly across from me while we were waiting to be released after our bean and cornbread lunch (it tasted so good eager to get out of this place and with me having so much hassle to get my car still in my Dad'd name). Im sure that this one statement might make some of the momentary judgemental readership put me under even more scrutiny for when I decide to finish this sabbatical and possibly go back to teaching(only after realizing that I won't be getting an advance from Rolling Stones Magazine for writing this adventure orbiting around the Okie Zone ). Evening in the place was a nightmare with one toilet among 40 alcoholics. I was only .06 and I was not driving...long story but Ill get into it later.





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The USA
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Alabama-Alaska-Arizona-California
Colorado-Connecticut-Delaware-
Florida-Georgia-Hawaii
Idaho-Illinois-Indiana-Iowa
Kansas-Kentucky-Louisiana-Maryland
Massachuesetts-Michigan
Missouri-Montana-Nebraska-Nevada
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West Virginia-Washington-Wisconsin The World
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Asia
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Maybe you can all check out these places! South Africa and then Australia on 30$/day maybe...if I find a place to work for room and board and include these experiences in my writing!

A's Beck and Cards' Hidalgo caught in love triangle with Dubya
Richard Hidalgo, George Bush, and Rod Beck share a tender moment.
WASHINGTON — On the condition on anonymity, sources close to the Athletics and Cardinals organizations confirmed that pitcher Rod Beck and outfielder Richard Hidalgo have been taking part in a secret three-way love affair with President George "Skippy" Bush. The three met during the 2001 off-season at a rave party at Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas. Rumors had been circulating for months about the torrid affair in early 2002, prompting Bush to invade Iraq to divert the media's attention. The White House released the following statement about the affair: "The President wants to remind the American people that there are terrorists out there. Orange Alert! Buy duct tape now! And Vote Bush."

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)


George W. Bush and the Crusades
By Alan Woods
On the eve of the war in Iraq, George W. Bush talked about a "crusade". He was obviously quite pleased with himself for having thought of such a catchy phrase. But he was quickly silenced by his advisers, who pointed out to him that the word "crusade" has very unfortunate associations for the Moslem world. After that, the word was quietly dropped from his vocabulary.
The reason why the word crusade has such negative associations in the East is not generally appreciated in the West, because very few people have taken the trouble to study the crusades. For most people - including the present occupant of the White House - they were something one vaguely remembers from the movies, where they are presented in a glamorous and romantic light, as the highest expression of Christian chivalry. The reality was rather different.
What were the Crusades?
The Middle Ages, as Marx pointed out, were accompanied by a "brutal display of vigour". The art of war was transformed by the development of heavily armed cavalry that was able to stage a devastating charge on the field of battle. This was the real origin of the word "chivalry", which means simply cavalry. All this was the product of a military society in which fighting was the main activity of the aristocracy. Violence was the essential ingredient in this world. The feudal nobility had two aims in life - to be a good fighter and to breed a lot of children. Essentially these aims coincided with those of a stud bull and their level of intelligence was frequently not much greater.
However, no ruling class likes to be remembered for its criminal activities, but rather wishes posterity to judge it by what it thinks about itself. Hence it spun an elaborate mythology about its innate sense of honour and justice - the essence of chivalry. In reality, of course, these were just for decorative purposes. The true brutal face of Christian Europe was seen in the bloodthirsty escapades known as the Crusades - the terrible wars between Europe and Islam that continued for 100 years.
In 1076 the Seljuk Turks conquered Jerusalem. This was a severe shock to the Church, which in the 11th century completely dominated European society at every level. In every village the church was the largest building, with its terrifying pictures of hell and damnation. The true believers who accepted the Church's message would go to heaven but the unbelievers would be cast into the pit of hell there to suffer eternal torments at the hands of demons. It was a picture of the world that men and women fervently believed.
In 1095 Pope Urban II incited a crowd of thousands to abandon everything and go to free Jerusalem from the "infidels". In return they were promised salvation in the next life. A mass of common people responded to the call and flocked to the banners of the First Crusade, inspired by the vision of the New Jerusalem. Their battle cry rang out in every village and town square: "Deus lo volt!" - "God wills it!" The Church whipped up religious fanaticism by alleging that the Holy Places were in danger. This was completely untrue.
The places that were holy to the Christians were also holy to the Moslems, who had occupied them since 638. Unlike the Christians, who were utterly intolerant towards other religious beliefs, the Moslems generally tolerated the Christians and other faiths, as long as they paid their taxes and did not cause trouble. Mohammed, it is true, said: "When ye encounter infidels strike off their heads" - but the same Mohammed also said: "Deal calmly with the infidels, leave them awhile in peace." He was referring to the Christians, whom he regarded as "people of the Book" and therefore "nearest in affection to believers". It was the unprovoked and violent aggression of Christian Europe that provoked a backlash from the Moslems.
Religious fanaticism played a central role in the bloody conflict between Europe and the Moslem world. There were, however, more mundane considerations, such as the prospect of loot and pillage. Nor were the aims of those who had organised the adventure of an exclusively sacred character. The Christian knights, as always, wanted an excuse to kill people, and if it would guarantee salvation for their multiple sins, then so much the better. The Church was generally glad to see the back of these unruly elements. In addition, the crusades considerably boosted its prestige and authority.
The merchants were even more interested in the success of this venture. The Turks now controlled the lucrative trade routes to the East, like the famous Silk Road. The most Christian merchants of Venice, Genoa and other European ports were completely shut out, and they wanted to get a share of the action. The crusades were their best chance to do this, moreover under the banner of the Almighty. This was an opportunity not to be missed.
As for the rabble that flocked to the banner of the crusades from every village and hamlet, it gave them a chance to escape from the drudgery of feudal service and see the world. Every kind of criminal element was attracted by the promise of loot, murder and rape. They were told by the Church that by pursuing their usual activities they could actually save their soul (a considerable bonus, when all is said and done) - just as long as the victims were infidels.
In the words of Saint Bernard - a key figure in the establishment of the religious-military Orders - killing for Christ was malecide not homicide, the extermination of injustice, rather than of the unjust and therefore desirable. In fact, "to kill a pagan is to win glory, for it gives glory to Christ." The crusaders took him at his word. In fact, some of the crusaders were not even much worried about the religion of those they attacked, as Desmond Seward points out:
"Many Franks had been sent on the crusade as penance for atrocious offences such as rape and murder and reverted to their unpleasant habits. Pilgrims were a natural prey, though one of the principal objects of the crusade had been to make the Holy Places safe for them." (D. Seward. The Monks of War, p. 33.)
The Crusades and the Jews
The First Crusade - like the ones that followed - presents an unholy picture of indiscriminate slaughter, rape and pillage. The crusaders everywhere left a trail of destruction and chaos in their path, like an army of ravenous locusts devouring the land everywhere they alight. Their particular speciality was pogroms against the Jews, but they generally spared very few of those who got in their way. Some of the comments of the crusaders about the Jews have been preserved, and serve to reveal their mentality:
"We have set out to march a long way to fight the enemies of God in the East, and behold, before our very eyes are his worst foes, the Jews. They must be dealt with first." And again: "You are the descendants of those who killed and hanged our God. Moreover [God] himself said: 'The day will yet dawn when my children will come and avenge my blood.' We are his children and it is our task to carry out his vengeance upon you, for you showed yourselves obstinate and blasphemous towards him ... [God] has abandoned you and has turned his radiance towards us and has made us his own." (N. Cohn, The Pursuit of the Millennium, p. 70.)
The Jewish population of the trading cities of the Rhine and Moselle were under the protection of the Emperor and the Bishops, but that did not save many of them, as the following account shows:
"At the beginning of May, 1096, crusaders outside Speyer planned to attack the Jews in their synagogue on the Sabbath. In this they were foiled and they were able to kill only a dozen Jews in the streets. The Bishop lodged the rest in his castle and had some of the murderers punished. At Worms the Jews were less fortunate. Here too they turned for help to the Bishop and the well-to-do burghers, but these were unable to protect them when men from the People's Crusade arrived and led the townsfolk in an attack on the Jewish quarter. The synagogue was sacked, houses were looted and all their adult occupants who refused baptism were killed. As for the children, some were killed, others taken away to be baptised and brought up as Christians. Some Jews had taken shelter in the Bishop's castle and when that too was attacked the Bishop offered to baptise them and so save their lives; but the entire community preferred to commit suicide. In all, some eight thousand Jews are said to have perished at Worms." (N. Cohn, The Pursuit of the Millennium, p. 69.)
Similar scenes were repeated in Verdun, Treves, Mainz, Trier, Cologne, Metz and other cities. Desperate Jews threw their wealth, their families and themselves into the flames or the rivers to escape the wrath of the mob. The Jews of Cologne went into hiding in the neighbouring villages but they were discovered by the crusaders and massacred in hundreds. All the Jews of Metz were killed. In all, several thousands perished.
This established a pattern that was repeated at the start of every other crusade. In every case the crusades were the signal for a massacre of the Jews.
The crusaders in Jerusalem
But all these atrocities against the Jews paled into insignificance when compared to what happened when the crusaders finally entered Jerusalem in July 1099. This terrible chapter is a blot on human history. It appalled the whole Moslem world and is forever engraved on its memory. Fired by a murderous bloodlust the Crusaders went on an orgy of slaughter that spared neither women nor children. The majority of the population of the city - some 70,000 souls - were butchered in a holocaust that raged for three days. The devout crusaders wept as they prayed, barefoot, at the Holy Sepulchre, before returning to the slaughter: "Our men", wrote one Christian chronicler, "followed [the fleeing people] and pursued them to the Temple of Solomon and they were up to their ankles in Moslem blood."
The celebrated English historian Edward Gibbon writes: "In the pillage of public and private wealth the adventurers had agreed to respect the exclusive property of the first occupant; and the spoils of the great mosque, seventy lamps and massy vases of gold and silver, rewarded the diligence, and displayed the generosity of Tancred. A bloody sacrifice was offered by his mistaken votaries of the God of the Christians: resistance might provoke, but neither age nor sex could mollify, their implacable rage: they indulged themselves three days in a promiscuous massacre, and the infection of the dead bodies produced an epidemical disease. After seventy thousand Moslems had been put to the sword and the harmless Jews burnt in their synagogue, they could still reserve a multitude of captives whom interest or lassitude persuaded them to spare." (E. Gibbon, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 6, p. 84.)
The savagery of the crusaders against the "infidels" exceeded all natural bounds. In one siege they roasted Moslem prisoners, including children, on spits and devoured them. Stories like this have often been told in wartime to blacken the name of enemies. But this one happens to be true. And the Pope of Rome blessed this slaughter of the innocents and granted a full pardon to those who perpetrated it.
The religious-military Orders
This movement, driven by religious fanaticism, nevertheless had a definite economic basis. The rapid growth of population in Europe meant that there were a large number of landless younger sons of the nobility in every country. These led armies of murderers and thieves under the banner of the Cross. The real intentions of the new crusaders were exposed by the fact that they immediately directed their attentions not to the places where the holy sites were situated but to the north where the Silk Route was.
The real aims of the invaders were shown by the fact that the Frankish knights built a network of ports for trade in the conquered cities - Antioch, Tripoli and so on. Jerusalem itself was an important trading centre. In the Bible, Jesus Christ expelled the moneychangers from the Temple of Jerusalem, but the Christian crusaders immediately reinstalled them. The conquered lands instantly became an irresistible magnet for all manner of adventurers from the slums and prisons of Europe. They came, not to spread the Word of the Lord but to grab the lands that belonged to the Moslems:
"The 'Franks' put their trust in sea power and fortresses. Genoese, Pisan and Venetian fleets soon controlled the sea, eager for commerce as the lure of spices, rice and sugar cane, of ostrich plumes from Africa and furs from Russia, of carpets from Persia, of inlaid metal work from Damascus, of silks and of muslin from Mosul and of countless other luxuries, attracted the merchants who settled in the coastal towns." (D. Seward. The Monks of War, p. 30.)
Here they built a line of fortresses, manned by the Knights Templars and the Knights Hospitalers. These were organizations of religious zealots, sworn to defend the Christian faith to the death. They were a mixture of monasticism and militarism, combining the strict discipline and austerity of monks with the warlike mentality of robber barons.
Religious-military Orders, like the Templars and Hospitalers, were founded in the 12th century. With their terrifying mixture of religious fanaticism and brutality they constituted the storm troopers of the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages. The Pope granted them considerable privileges, including exemption from the payment of the tithe. They ended up a church within the church and a state within the state. Eventually they had to be repressed, and the last Templar Grand Master was burnt alive on a slow fire for heresy.
The activities of these military religious orders were characterised by violent aggression and extreme savagery, to the point of exterminating whole peoples. Thus, the ancient Prussians (originally Bo-Russians), a Slav people living on the shores of the Baltic, were exterminated by the Teutonic Order in order to clear the area for German settlement - an early example of the policy of what Hitler described as the search for "Lebensraum" (living space). These were also considered to be crusades. The terrible forest campaigns of the Teutonic Order against the Lithuanians have been described as the most ferocious wars of the Middle Ages. Eisenstein, the great Soviet film director, took the subject of his masterpiece Alexander Nevsky from the bloody defeat of the Teutonic knights at the battle on ice at Lake Peipus in 1242.
Desmond Seward comments: "In theory they [the Orders] were a protection against the infidel, in practice merciless aggressors. The Teutonic Order's deliberate liquidation of the Prussian race is sufficient testimony; as a chaplain chronicler proudly recorded 'they drove them forth so that not one remained who would not bow his neck to the Yoke of Faith - this with the help of the Lord Jesus Christ who is blessed for ever and ever'." (D. Seward, The Monks of War, p. 21.)
Economic interests
How history repeats itself! Similar sentiments could be expressed by George W. Bush and his band of Neo Conservative religious Right Republican fanatics. But just as in the 21st century the religious verbiage conceals very real material interests, so it was in the Middle Ages. The motives of the crusaders - including the Orders - were not so pure as one might think. The heady wine of religious fanaticism was mixed with a reasonable quantity of economic self-interest. For example, the Templars became successful bankers, anticipating the great Italian banking houses of the later Middle Ages:
"The Templars became professional bankers; all monies collected for the Holy Land were conveyed by them from their European preceptories to the temple at Jerusalem, while pilgrims and even Moslem merchants deposited their cash at the local temple. Brethren needed money for arms and equipment, to build fortresses, to hire mercenaries, and to buy off enemies, so the funds in their strong-rooms could not be allowed to lie idle; the Church's embargo on usury was circumvented by adding the interest to the sum due for repayment and Arab specialists were employed for dealings in the money markets of Baghdad and Cairo while an excellent service of bills of exchange was provided." (D. Seward, Op. cit., 50.)
They also engaged in trade and tourism: "Both Templars and Hospitalers found it cheaper to transport troops in their own ships, and passages were available to pilgrims; at one time the Templars conveyed 6,000 pilgrims each year. Their boats were popular, for they maintained a flotilla of escort ships and could be trusted not to sell their passengers into slavery at Moslem ports, as did certain Italian merchants. It was natural to use empty space for merchandise so they exported spices, silk, dyes, porcelain and glass, taking full advantage of their exemption from customs dues, and soon rivalled the Levantine traders who banked with them." (ibid.)
These Orders, originally motivated by religious fanaticism, later acquired very real material interests. They had access to colossal wealth from the plunder of what was really the first European colony. And the colonial masters lived like kings.
"Many lords preferred to retire to some luxurious villa on the coast, while the brethren had the money and men to run the vast Syrian fortresses and also to solve such irksome problems as finding husbands for heiresses or furnishing wards with guardians. Donations and recruits poured in from Europe in a steady flow." (ibid., p. 49.)
The "Monks of War" defended their interests with a formidable fighting machine, led by able commanders. Their religious beliefs did not prevent them from slaughtering infidels wherever they went. Rather they regarded it as a religious duty. But through their cruelty they managed to unite all Arabs against them. This great task was achieved by one of the most remarkable military commanders in the history of the Middle East, Salah ad-Din Yusif ibn Ayub, better known to us as Saladin.
Saladin
In striking contrast to the Christian bandits, real chivalry was to be found among the Saracen "infidels" like the Moslem leader Saladin. He was a natural warrior, unequalled in his knowledge of the arts of war at that time. He was also brave, loyal and generous. Born a Kurd, when the Kurds were looked down upon by Arabs, he had risen from the ranks and became one of the Sultan's most trusted guards. Saladin knew both how to capture a city and also how to hold onto it.
When Nur-al-Din died, he was succeeded by his Kurdish general, Shirkuh. But the latter soon died, apparently from over-eating, and his place was taken by his nephew, Saladin, who became Vizir. This remarkable man was a mystic and an ascetic who fasted, slept on a rough mat and gave alms to the poor ceaselessly. His inquiring mind decided that there was much good in Christianity, and he won respect even from his crusader enemies.
Saladin united all the Arab states - a great achievement - and created the most formidable fighting force in the world. He became king of Egypt and Syria in 1176 with the blessing of the Caliph of Baghdad. He organised a jihad against the invaders and showed himself to be a brilliant military tactician, forcing the Franks to fight on his terms, at a time and place of his choosing.
In complete contrast, the moral character of the Frankish leaders may be seen by the conduct of a man called Reynault. This truly Christian knight had tortured a priest to death by the procedure of cutting numerous wounds in his head, then smearing these with honey and leaving the rest to the insects. This gangster was defeated by Saladin in a famous battle in July 1187 by guerrilla tactics. The Franks were lured into the desert, where they were tormented by the heat and worn down by the weight of their armour. Then they were harassed by the archers of Saladin, who showered them with arrows and then disappeared, avoiding direct battle.
The Franks had no water and were exhausted. Saladin's men set fire to the dry grass, which gave rise to thick clouds of choking smoke. With the terrifying sound of drums and pipes adding to the psychological pressure, the Saracens first shot arrows through the smoke screen to kill the enemy's horses, then charged. The Crusaders were routed. After the battle there were so many slaves that one could be bought for the price of a pair of shoes. Saladin distinguished between the ordinary soldiers and the Knights Templar - all of the latter were put to the sword without mercy.
The battle of Hattin effectively marked the end of crusader rule. Saladin's forces surrounded Jerusalem and captured it. But unlike the Crusaders, who butchered all the Moslems and Jews they could find when they took the city, he showed himself graceful in victory. He forbade his men to take revenge or to kill people. Not a single church was destroyed. Saladin personally participated in the cleansing of the mosque that the Christians had desecrated and was in a filthy condition. The defeated were offered the chance to pay a ransom to go free. Those who could not pay were sold as slaves, but at least they were not killed.
Richard and Saladin
Europe was stunned. When the Pope heard the news he is said to have died of shock. But Saladin made one mistake. He allowed the city of Tyre to hold out and thus allowed the Christians to reinforce it by sea and preserve a foothold. Acre was besieged and all Europe was mobilised for war against the Arabs in the Third Crusade. Frederick Barbarossa, the Emperor of the Romans as he styled himself, raised the first army, but he drowned off the coast of Sicily. He was soon followed by others, including Richard the First of England, known to history by the name "Coeur de Leon" (Lionheart). This reminds us of what Trotsky wrote about the tsarist general Kornilov - "the heart of a lion and the brain of a sheep". Probably Richard was of a similar type.
Like many of his contemporaries, Richard "took the cross" and departed for the Holy Land - about 2,500 miles from home - to spread the message of Christianity with fire and sword. He was undoubtedly a good soldier, disciplined and brave. His armies were paid for by the sale of dukedoms and other possessions. It was reputed to be the best disciplined force in Europe. Its heavily armoured knights were capable of launching a murderous charge. The crossbow was a deadly new addition to its weaponry. In fact, it was considered to be such a wicked and inhuman weapon that the Pope had banned it - except, of course, for the purpose of killing "infidels".
This was said to be the most professional army to go to Jerusalem. One difference was that they travelled by ship - which the rabble could not afford and therefore there were considerably less undesirable camp followers. But like all medieval armies, this force was motivated by the greed for loot and money. Yet again, the Crusaders went on the rampage in Lisbon, burning, killing and raping. The same performance was repeated in Marseilles, Sicily and Cyprus. Probably they were just practicing and getting in the right mood for massacring Moslems upon arrival in the Holy Land.
This was indeed a clash between two civilizations (if we can consider medieval Europe to qualify for this title). Saladin, who was a fair and magnanimous person, admired the Franks (as all Crusaders were known among the Arabs) for their bravery, but he actually regarded them as barbarians and animals. He was not far wrong. In fact, Christian Europe at that time was the most backward and barbarous fringe of the civilized world, and barely qualified for inclusion in it. On the other hand, Islamic civilization was at its peak.
The Arabs were on a far higher plane to Europe, culturally, scientifically, intellectually and, in many ways, militarily. For example, the Europeans marvelled at the metalworking that produced the wonderful Saracen swords. They were made of steel that was better, harder and sharper than anything Europe could produce. There was nothing in Europe to compare with the centres of learning of Toledo, Granada and Cordoba. They were destroyed, along with the Arabs' irrigation system, by the Spanish Reconquista that threw back the South of Spain for centuries.
In 1191 the barbarian horde from Europe arrived under the walls of Acre. They depended on weight and sheer brute force to win battles. At first Richard's forces drove all before them. Acre fell after a siege of eleven months. 3,000 Moslem prisoners were taken. When Saladin did not pay up with sufficient alacrity, they were slaughtered - men, women and children. The butchery lasted all day until the last one was dead. Saladin attempted to launch a rescue operation but failed. The Moslems were appalled by this wanton cruelty, which was foreign to their culture and military practice.
Saladin used intelligence and guerrilla tactics that suited his light cavalry. His method was to avoid a pitched battle and harass the enemy by skirmishes, ambushes and arrows. At the battle of Arsuf Christians and Moslems were locked in a deadly struggle. The Christian knights now had a new weapon - the heavy cavalry that swept all before it in a terrifying charge. Saladin's light cavalry was no match for these heavily armed monsters. His light cavalry attacked the Crusaders again and again, but Richard's line of infantry held firm. Then just as the line began to break, he launched a full charge. The effect was devastating. The Arabs nevertheless managed to regroup and counterattack, but the Crusaders still held firm and attacked in turn. Saladin was beaten, but enabled his forces to retreat in good order.
Despite the setback, Saladin attacked Jaffa and almost took it. The following detail reveals Saladin's chivalrous and generous character. When Richard lost his horse during the battle, Saladin sent him a fresh horse to enable him to fight on. In the end, however, Saladin was forced to withdraw and sign a peace treaty. Richard was left in possession of a hundred mile strip of coast from Acre to Jaffa. But in fact Saladin had won his main objective: Jerusalem was safe.
Richard was treated much better by Saladin than he would be by his fellow Christians. On the way home from the Holy Land he was imprisoned by Leopold of Austria and held for ransom for 15 months. This proves the old saying that there is no honour among thieves. He eventually returned to England on payment of 150,000 marks - a vast sum that was equal to one quarter of the revenues of his subjects. This nearly bankrupted England, but his loyal subjects did not get value for their money, since he was killed in 1199 by a crossbow bolt. As a good Frenchman, he ordered that his body be divided up, his entrails going to Poitou, his heart to Rouen, his body to Rome, and nothing to England! As for Saladin, he desired to go to Mecca but before he could do so he caught a fever and died. His body was buried in a tomb in Damascus.


Excuse me for interrupting, Alan, but I wonder if our readers could imagine King George the Second on a horse leading a charge against the infidels in his costume with the red cross of Jesus on the front. At least King Richard was in the front lines and put his money where his mouth was. I would at least have more respect for how much he wanted to invade Iraq and avenge his father's embarassment, Saddam! Instead, he intentionally forgot about Osama who is a "son" of his wealthy Saudi friends, the Bin Ladens. The Saudi Prince Bandar is almost a member of the Bush family! I would also have more respect for his passion to invade without UN approval, if he actually put his "White House" in the center of Bagdad.
King George was to afraid to go to war or even too much a "fortunate son" to avoid going to war. Unlike King Richard the Lion Heart, George is a chicken heart and grew up to be a chicken hawk. Okay back to Constantinople!

The Sack of Constantinople
To trace the whole history of the crusades would be a long and tedious business. Essentially, the same sorry picture was repeated every time. Not much can be learned from the telling of it. But there is one episode that must not be overlooked. The whole purpose of the crusades was supposed to be to defend Christendom from the Moslem threat. Specifically, the Western Church was supposed to come to the aid of the Byzantine Empire, which was being hard pressed by the Seljuk Turks. But when the crusaders eventually came to Constantinople in the Fourth Crusade it was as conquerors not saviours.
This was the formative period of capitalism in Italy, in which Venice, the great trading power of the eastern Mediterranean, played a leading role. The Venetian merchant princes were in the process of displacing Byzantium as the major power in the East, taking advantage of the advance of the Turks and the constant internal strife that rent Constantinople and sapped its strength. When Pope Innocent III launched the Fourth Crusade in 1204, the Venetians saw their chance.
The blind but cunning Doge of Venice, Enrico Dandolo, persuaded the crusaders to participate in an intrigue to install the pretender Alexius Angelus on the throne of Constantinople. Alexius was foolish enough to make extravagant promises to the crusaders, which he was unable to keep. The avarice of the crusaders was excited by the sight of the colossal wealth of Constantinople - a Christian city, though of the Orthodox, not Catholic, faith.
On April 12th the crusaders stormed Constantinople. For three days they plundered it, causing terrible devastation. Even priests joined in the orgy of looting, murder and destruction that culminated in the desecration of Hagia Sophia - the greatest church in Christendom - where a drunken prostitute was seated on the throne of the patriarch. Then the conquerors elected a French Emperor and a Venetian patriarch, carving out baronies and duchies for themselves. This was far easier than fighting the Saracens! In this way the most Christian armies of Europe destroyed the Third Rome. Byzantium, never really recovered from this terrible blow, though it eventually succeeded in driving out the crusader barbarians. It finally fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.
The Pope of Rome played a disgraceful and hypocritical role in all this. On the one hand he protested his horror and exclaimed that he could not blame the Greeks (of Constantinople) for hating the Latins whom they knew to be treacherous dogs. But on the other hand, he did not lift a finger to reinstate the rightful patriarch but instead confirmed the Latin usurper and the pseudo-Emperor. The Orthodox Church was persecuted and its monks evicted from their monasteries to make room for the Cistercians and their military Orders.
The rape of Constantinople tells us all we need to know about the religious content of the glorious crusades. An even crueller and bloodier crusade was waged against the Christians of Southern France in the Albigensian crusade against the Cathars. That destroyed the flourishing Provençal culture that was a shining light in the darkness of medieval Europe. The same methods that had been perfected in the Middle East were used here and later against the great Moslem civilization of southern Spain, destroyed by the Christian Reconquista.
The crusades of George W. Bush
The crusades of the Middle Ages were among the darkest pages of human history. There is not a single positive word one can say about them. Not, that is, unless your name is George W. Bush. Of course, the US President actually knows very little about the real history of the crusades, just as he knows very little about history in general, or anything else, for that matter.
We live in the first decade of the 21st century. It is a very exciting period in human history in many ways. Science and technology have advanced to unheard-of heights. Many of the most important advances have been made in the USA. And yet in other respects human consciousness is lagging far behind the advances of the productive forces, science and technique.
In the USA today most people believe in God and the devil. Millions are convinced that the first Book of Genesis - and the rest of the Bible - is literally true. They demand that children in American schools should be taught that God created the world in six days, and that the first woman was made out of Adam's rib. The first American to circle the world in a space ship, when asked to deliver a message to the people of the world, out of the whole of world literature, chose - the Book of Genesis.
This contradiction between the colossal advances of science and the extreme backwardness of human consciousness is a dialectical contradiction. Nowhere is this contradiction so obvious as in the mentality of the right wing Republican Neo-Conservative clique that is now firmly installed in the White House. If we were able to open the head of George Bush and look into the workings of his brain, we would see there all the accumulated rubbish, prejudices and superstitions of the last thousand years.
The mentality of those ladies and gentlemen who stand at the head of the world's most powerful and advanced country is not fundamentally different to the primitive psychology of the Middle Ages. They are steeped in religion, in its crudest and most primitive forms. They talk about the world in terms that could easily have been used by the crusaders: the "axis of Evil" and so on. They betray all the psychological traits of religious fanatics like Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar. The only difference, as they will immediately protest, is that they are right, whereas those who hold contrary views are wrong (Bin Laden also thinks the same).
Religious fanatics are always potentially dangerous people, especially when they have weapons in their hands. And George Bush has more weapons than most. He has just killed a lot of people in Iraq - men, women and children- in an unjust and unnecessary war. In these activities he has been enthusiastically supported by another religious fanatic, Tony Blair, who has recently announced that he is prepared to "meet his Maker" with a clear conscience after the war in Iraq.
In the same way the medieval crusaders who waded up to their ankles in blood did so with a clear conscience, absolutely convinced that they were doing the Lord's work. Morally, there is not a lot to choose between the two, except that the crusaders of old used to do their own dirty work, while Bush and Blair merely order others to do it for them.
Religion here serves as a useful fig-leaf to hide the real purpose of war. Just as the crusaders' religious zeal was the cover for other, baser motives, the real aims are disguised by all manner of hypocritical "moral" and even "humanitarian" considerations.
It is not true, as some people have argued, that the war in Iraq is a "conflict of cultures". Millions of people in the West actively opposed the war, and still do. These are the natural allies of the people of Iraq, not their enemies. On the other hand, it would be foolish to believe that Bush and Blair invaded Iraq because of a difference about religion. They had other things in mind!
The crusaders went to the Holy Land with the cross on their banner. But they soon got down to the serious business of filling their pockets, plundering cities, seizing lands and profitable trade routes. And our modern crusaders went to Iraq shouting loudly about freedom, peace and democracy, but made sure that they immediately got their hands on the oil. It is necessary to distinguish between shadow and substance!
From a moral point of view there is little to choose between the barbarism of the Middle Ages and that of our own epoch. The main difference is that the destructive power of modern armies is infinitely greater than that of the Middle Ages.
It is necessary to fight against barbarism, for a new world in which the madness and superstition we have inherited from the Middle Ages - and an even remoter past - will forever be consigned to the rubbish heap of history. The lag in consciousness will be overcome by the march of events - stormy events that will shake the psychology of the masses and bring about sudden and drastic changes. The old ideas and prejudices will not survive. The way will be prepared for a new world and a new way of thinking and acting that is worthy of real human beings.
London, May 8, 2003.
See also:
The world after the war in Iraq. By Alan Woods (May 6, 2003)
Iraq: The Fallujah massacre. By Alan Woods (April 30, 2003).
Uprisings and betrayals: a brief history of the left in Iraq By Felix Zorba and Roberto Sarti (April 29, 2003)
Iraqi museums, art and the values of the market place - Capitalism: a threat to culture By Alan Woods
The "civilising" effects of imperialist aggression on Iraq By Fred Weston (April 14, 2003)
Vandals of the 21st century. By Alan Woods (April 10, 2003)
What is to be done?- The current situation and the tasks of the Marxists. By Alan Woods (April 3, 2003).

[Back to In Defence of Marxism][Back to "War on Terror"][Back to Middle East]




WInner of King George the Second in his crusader outfit wins a free subscription to the Okie Zone magazine when it starts coming out in a newstand near you!
(Muffy rolls her eyes)

I had a fantastic time in the land of schwag.
In visiting with fellow schwagers, we are discovering collective consciousness. Another friend and I conversed about the whole collective thought of “Rainbow Gatherings”. I was even more inspired to continue with the writing, realizing, my stream of consciousness could be like James Joyce or Jack Kerouac "passing the bong of conciousness"

(Muffy is now rolling her eyes at this insanity
while the Bohemian family that has befriended me, supports this creative outlet)
(Now she wonders who is this family??
And he tells her’
“Its none of your business”)
"no worries, mate ...u ain't my boss :)"



I am looking for what spewed out of Jack Kerouac when he was in his most creative 21 days, moving from one cup of Java to another in “greasy spoons” throughout the country.

Garvald will do the same in his own Garvaldian style meeting other schwagers and schwagstocks,
moving from one bong to another bong,
as he meets these tribes offering the peace pipe of love , harmony, postive vibes, tunes and acceptance...

the state we all can achieve if we let it happen .... (to be continued...take a cup of J or a hit of the bong..ur choice)

excerpt from "Star Trek":

"Picard refuses to co-operate, and the Borg forcibly assimilate him. But unlike other drones, he is given a distinct identity LOCUTUS OF BORG. Locutus provides the Borg with a single voice and a representitive that other races can deal with.Despite the Borg`s best efforts, part of Picard`s distinct individulity remains intact deep inside Locutus. When Data gains access to his mind. Picard is able to tell him how to access the Borg`s collective conciousness and stop the attack on Earth."

WE MUST ACCESS THE BUSHS' COLLECTIVE AND SAVE THE WORLD!

(see comment box for full story on Borg's lack of individuality -a trait of conforming Republican sheep. Baah, baah, Bush!)

I took a camera from Walgreens and filled it up with pics. I'd like to let every one see these pics if I can figure out how to post them. I love this place so much and want to tell my favorite readers all about it and the pristine wilderness, especially this creek that was once a raging river by the looks of the geology along the banks many thousands of years ago.
Imagine living in this land before civilization came! Imagine only native Americans who knew how to treat the land and the animals with respect, thrived here and apreciated the beauty of these places that were all over this country.

It is sad with this "Republican" fundamentalist god how humans should take over this "spaceship earth" and how it is wrong to really care about the environment(for fear of being called a "wacko environmentalist"). It is so important that all you "Schwaggers" get registered to vote or even this utopic environment will be taken away under the guise of national security. Fundamental Puritans who do not want others to have fun and enjoy the beauty of a place will close this place down and put up a parking lot, a super Walmart and a McDonalds. It is so nice to walk around with out cars and vehicles that destroy the country and people more than any war!
(to be continued)

It's funny how the Bush family likes to act like its from Texas. They love to get the Bubba and Nascar vote with George w. putting on his affected accent like he's a good ole boy emphasizing his lies like he has no concience. I guess I was the only non-Republican in the audience to see how fake he was in Lee's Summitt. Cannot anyone else see how fake and superficial they all are?
He knows just like I do from living in Oklahoma for 24 years how much "Picante Sauce" animosity there is to Yankees from "good ole boys" in the south! George jr. realiz


For more about the Binladen-Bush connection check out this site:
http://www.freedomdomain.com/Templemount/link1j.html

Besides making money for The Family, selling arms to Russia and China serves another purpose.
Their increased weapons capability will recreate “cold war” enemies.
This will engender an atmosphere of fear and crisis, which will give The Family a platform from which to further increase control, intimidation and manipulation.
This fearful atmosphere will also focus our attention on The Family leaders to “keep us safe”.
This not only maintains their control, but also offers many opportunities for them to implement more legislation and emergency Executive Orders for “our protection”.
These espionage, treason and security laws further erode our rights by transfering power from the people to the government.
http://lists.his.com/intelforum/msg05255.html

So, madness it is, but it seems our “elected” Family, currently operating their business out of their new exclusive address, is trying to portray China and Russia as powerful enemies whilst courting them as business partners to sell weapons to that would then increase their threat to us.

What kind of MIND WARP PSY OP is that???

By the way, did anyone notice that Bush, Sr. just happened to be in China when the “spy plane went down”? What a convenient delivery system of our technology to the Red Chinese. Perhaps our old friend was there to insure a smooth delivery and discuss future arms and technology transfers. Or perhaps it was to discuss his lucrative global drug trade.

Osama Bin Laden's Bush Family
Business Connections

Osama Bin Laden's Bush family business connections, alliance with Pakistan, will stimulate drug trade, bring revenues under U.S. control — Colombian opium production will soar. The Taliban's biggest economic attack on the U.S. came in February [2001] with the destruction of its opium crop — Michael C. Ruppert
[©2001, Michael C. Ruppert and From The Wilderness Publications. All Rights Reserved. May be reprinted and distributed for non-profit purposes only] — From the September 18, issue of From The Wilderness.



Money connections between Bush Republicans and Osama bin Laden go way back and the political and economic connections have remained unbroken for 20 years. And what appears to be a "new" alliance with Pakistan is merely a new manifestation of a decades-long partnership in the heroin trade. Conveniently ignored in all of the press coverage since the tragic events of Sept. 11 is the fact that on May 17 Secretary of State Colin Powell announced a gift of $43 million to the Taliban as a purported reward for its eradication of Afghanistan's opium crop this February. That, in effect, made the U.S. the Taliban's largest financial benefactor according to syndicated columnist Robert Scheer writing in The Los Angeles times on May 22. But — as we described in FTW's March 2001 issue — the Taliban's destruction of that crop was apparently the single most important act of economic warfare against U.S. economic interests that the Taliban had ever committed. So why the gift?

Critics of the Gulf War well recall how, just prior to Sadam's invasion of Kuwait, President Bush (Sr.) dispatched Ambassador April Glaspie to visit Sadam with a letter and a "wink and a nod" telling the Iraqi leader that it was OK to invade his smaller neighbor. The May gift from Uncle Sam could well have been sending the same kind of message, along with necessary funds to complete the attacks. Drugs and terrorism go hand in hand.

Until February, Afghanistan had been the world's largest producer of opium/heroin, claiming close to 70% of the world's total production. That opium, consumed largely in Western Europe and smuggled through the Balkans, was a direct source of cash deposits in Western financial institutions and markets. I specifically commented on this at an economic crisis conference in Moscow, Russia on March 7. In my formal statement to the Russian conference I said, "Just before coming to this conference I read in the Associated Press, Agence France Press and other reliable sources that the Taliban has recently eradicated most of its 3,000 ton opium crop in Afghanistan. If true, I view this as a form of economic warfare against Russia [and the U.S.] because it would drive opium production more into Southeast Asia and Colombia. However, I now suspect that this will result in a shift of opium production to the Caucasus under the Kurds which will see an increase in smuggling through Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. I should note that both Vice President Richard Cheney and the designated Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage are members of the US-Azerbaijan Chamber of Commerce. Such a move would have the effect of drastically shortening smuggling routes and costs into Western Europe and of bypassing unstable areas of the Balkans.

I have received additional reports that Uzbekistan is now awash in the opium poppy and, as in the US with the CIA, that Russian military and intelligence agencies facilitate the trade as a means of protecting access to hard currency. The point here is not that the US it totally evil or the only country doing these things. But the US is far and away the most advanced nation when it comes to the use of such methods to achieve superiority. As [Russian economist Michael] Khazin has noted, the US and Britain and Germany started the conflict in Kosovo in 1999 to stave off a collapse of western markets following the Asian collapse of 1997-8. Now Colombia is a last-ditch effort to protect the US markets and European opposition is jeopardizing that plan."

The Taliban's actions this year severed the ruling military junta in Pakistan from its primary source of foreign revenues and made bin Laden and the Taliban completely expendable in the eyes of the Pakistani government. It also cut off billions of dollars in revenues that had been previously laundered through western banks and Russian financial institutions connected to them.

Now as US military action will replace the Taliban government and fresh crops will be planted in Afghanistan, the slack in cash flow will assuredly be replaced by dramatically increased opium production in Colombia; the revenues from that effort being needed to maintain the revenue streams into Wall Street. Prior to the WTC attacks, credible sources, including the U.S. government, the IMF, Le Monde and the U.S. Senate placed the amount of drug cash flowing into Wall Street and U.S. banks at around $250-$300 billion a year.

In that context, the real history of Osama bin Laden, as America's useful terrorist-du-jour reveals a long and continuous history, interwoven with the drug trade and the Bush family, of supporting conflicts that have benefited U.S. military and economic interests of bin Laden .

There are direct historical links between Osama bin Laden's business interests and those of the Bush family. On September 15 I received the following message from FTW subscriber, Professor John Metzger of Michigan State University:


"We should revisit the history of BCCI, a bank used by the legendary Palestinian terrorist known as Abu Nidal. BCCI was closely tied to American and Pakistan intelligence. Its clients included the Afghan rebels, and the father of Osama bin Laden. The father of bin Laden named Houston investment broker James R. Bath as his business representative in Texas, right after George W. Bush's father became CIA director in 1976. By 1977, Bath invested $50,000 into junior's first business, Arbusto Energy, while Osama bin Laden would soon become a CIA asset. George W. Bush's FBI director Robert Mueller was part of the Justice Department's questionable investigation of BCCI. (On BCCI, the bin Ladens, and the Bushes, see the books, The Outlaw Bank, A Full Service Bank, and Fortunate Son)." Further details of the business and financial relationships between the Bush and bin Laden family are found in Peter Brewton's 1992 book The Mafia, CIA and George Bush. BCCI, incidentally, was founded by a Pakistani."
Economics Professor Michel Chossudovsky of the University of Ottawa has just completed a detailed history of bin Laden's career detailing his secret funding and logistical support to terrorist organizations beginning from his early CIA-supported roots in the 1980s as a "freedom fighter" through to the present day. Chossudovsky's compelling and well documented article, Who Is Osama Bin Laden? dated Sept 12, 2001 can be found on the Internet.

Bin Laden's role has not just been as a practitioner of terrorist acts but as a trainer and supplier of terrorist organizations around the world. Included in bin Laden's coterie are terrorist groups linked to the Balkans, Albania, the KLA (a U.S. ally), and rebel groups leading the insurrection against Russia in Chechnya.

As FTW described in 1998, and as confirmed by Chossudovsky, the key to understanding U.S. support of bin Laden is to grasp that he has always been controlled by a cutout, the Pakistani government and its intelligence service the ISI. In this manner there has been virtually no direct contact between bin Laden and the CIA. This has served the dual purpose of maintaining his apparent "purity" with his followers and providing plausible deniability for the CIA. The whole underlying pretext for this relationship evaporated with the Taliban's destruction of the opium crop in February.

Chossudovsky writes: "The history of the drug trade in Central Asia is intimately related to the CIA's covert operations. Prior to the Soviet-Afghan war, opium production in Afghanistan and Pakistan was directed to small regional markets. There was no local production of heroin. In this regard [Professor] Alfred McCoy's study confirms that within two years of the onslaught of the CIA operation in Afghanistan, 'the Pakistan-Afghanistan borderlands became the world's top heroin producer, supplying 60 per sent of the U.S. demand....

"With the disintegration of the Soviet Union, a new surge in opium production has unfolded. (According to UN estimates, the production of opium in Afghanistan in 1998-99 — coinciding with the build up of armed insurgencies in the former Soviet republics — reached a record high of 4,600 metric tons. Powerful business syndicates in the former Soviet Union allied with organized crime are competing for the strategic control over the heroin routes. "The ISI's extensive intelligence military-network was not dismantled in the wake of the Cold War. The CIA continued to support the Islamic "jihad" out of Pakistan..." "... The Golden Crescent drug trade was also being used to finance and equip the Bosnian Muslim Army (starting in the early 1990s) and he Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). In the last few months there is evidence that Mujhideen mercenaries are fighting in the ranks of the KLA-NLA terrorists in their assaults into Macedonia... "... With regard to Chechnya, the main rebel leaders Shamil Basayev and Al Khattab were trained and indoctrinated in CIA sponsored camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan... In this regard, the involvement of Pakistan's ISI and its radical Islamic proxies are actually calling the shots in this war. "Russia's main pipeline route transits through Chechnya and Dagestan. Despite Washington's perfunctory condemnation of Islamic terrorism, the indirect beneficiaries of the Chechen war are the Anglo-American oil conglomerates which are vying for control over oil resources and pipeline corridors out of the Caspian Sea basin." The oil and drug connections were the subject of FTW's story, The Bush-Cheney drug Empire in October, 2000. That story is online.

Both Bush and Cheney are oil men.George Bush, Sr. was Vice President and, by virtue of executive Order 12333, in charge of all U.S. intelligence and narcotics operations from 1981 through 1989. As President from 1989 through 1993, he continued and expanded his control in these areas. Thus, it was Bush (the elder) who directly nourished and nurtured bin Laden's evolution.

Dramatic Confirmation From Indian Government

The web site of the Indian Embassy in Washington contains dramatic confirmation for these positions. On September 4, 2000, B. Raman, Director of India's Institute for Topical Studies wrote an open letter to the U.S. Congress entitled Pakistan's Noriega's. That eight-page article exposed the depth of Pakistani government involvement in the drug trade. It may be viewed at: www.indianembassy.org/int_media/saag_september_04_2000.html http://www.indianembassy.org/int_media/saag_september_04_2000.html

The letter said, in part: "For more than a decade, the people of India have been living in a state of half-war and half-peace due to the depredations of a large number of terrorists, outrageously called jehadists, who have been trained, armed and funded and infiltrated into the State of Jammu & Kashmir and other parts of India by Pakistan in order to make the people of India and its security forces bleed in the name of religion.

"More people belonging to different religions — Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and others — have been killed in India by these mercenary-terrorists sponsored by the State of Pakistan than by any other terrorist groups anywhere else in the world..." "...Many other States have suffered and have been suffering due to the depredations of terrorists, made in and exported from Pakistan and the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan — [these include] Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the Central Asian Republics, the Chechnya and Dagestan areas of Russia, the Xinjiang province of China, Bangladesh, the Arakan area of Burma and the southern Philippines..."

"After his [1993] removal, [as official head of Pakistani intelligence, trusted advisor to Pakistani leader Gen. Pervez Musharraf] Lt. Gen. Nasir traveled to Somalia, Chechnya, Dagestan, the Central Asian Republics, ...China, and the Southern Philippines as a preacher... and helped Islamic organizations, including the group which killed U.S. troops... in Somalia." "...It was he, who, during his tenure as the DG Director General] of the ISI... has entered into an agreement with the LTTE of Sri Lanka [which secured] LTTE's assistance in smuggling Afghanistan produced heroin in its ships to West Europe, the USA and Canada..." "...Another reason for the ISI's helping the LTTE, despite its anti-Muslim policies, was to use it for smuggling heroin to West Europe, the U.S. and Canada. During Zia-ul-Haq's regime in the 1980s, heroin had become a major source of extra revenue not only for the State of Pakistan, specially the ISI and Pakistan's nuclear and missile establishment, but also to many senior officers of the Pakistan Army, including [Musharraf et al]..." "The way Mr. Sharif before October 1999 and Gen. Musharraf since then have been using the heroin money to prevent the Pakistani economy from collapsing has not received due attention in the U.S. ..." "If one goes purely by economic indicators, Pakistan's must be in as bad a shape as that of Russia, or even worse, since Russia has been in receipt of, Western and IMF assistance..." "Where does the money come from?

From the smuggling of heroin to West Europe, the U.S. and Canada. The U.S. Government might have stopped economic assistance... from the taxpayers' money. But why should the Noriegas of Pakistan be worried when they get billions of dollars from the heroin sale in the U.S.?... " Vice President Dick Cheney's recent comment that the CIA needs to get in bed with "unsavory characters" is a joke. That's a bed that the CIA has never left. And it's a marriage vow that President Bush has just reaffirmed for all the world to see.

Messages to Mario Profaca may be published at Mario's Cyberspace Station and/or forwarded to its associated Spy News list.

Who let bin Ladens leave U.S.?
By Alexander Bolton

The Bush administration has refused to answer repeated requests from the Sept. 11 commission about who authorized flights of Saudi Arabian citizens, including members of Osama bin Laden’s family, from the United States immediately after the attacks of 2001.

Former Rep. Lee Hamilton (D-Ind.), vice chairman of the independent, bipartisan commission, disclosed the administration’s refusal to answer questions on the sensitive subject during a recent closed-door meeting with a group of Democratic senators, according to several Democratic sources.

However, former Navy Secretary John Lehman, a Republican appointee who also attended the meeting, said in an e-mail to The Hill that he told the senators the White House has been fully cooperative.

Democrats suspect President Bush, who met privately with the Saudi Arabian ambassador, Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, on the morning of Sept. 13, 2001, may have personally authorized the controversial flights, several of which took place when all other U.S. commercial air travel had been halted.

The White House communications office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

If Bush or members of his inner circle are shown to have approved the flight of the prominent Saudi Arabian citizens, it could be damaging to Bush, who has staked his re-election campaign in large measure to his carefully built image as the steady leader of the war against terrorism.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said she asked Hamilton and Lehman if they were able to find out who in the administration authorized the Saudi Arabian flights.
“Who did this? Why would the Saudis want to get out of the country? They said [those questions have] been part of their inquiry and they haven’t received satisfactory answers yet and they were pushing,” Boxer said.

Another Democrat in the meeting who confirmed Boxer’s account reported that Hamilton said, “We don’t know who authorized it. We’ve asked that question 50 times.”

Boxer said she obtained a commitment from Hamilton that the commission will state in its final report if the White House refused to answer questions about who authorized the Saudi flights after the 2001 attacks.

Hamilton, who was traveling to New York for commission hearings scheduled for today and tomorrow, could not be reached for comment.

Al Felzenberg, the commission’s spokesman, declined to comment because he said he was not familiar with the discussions with the Democratic senators.

Last month, the Sept. 11 commission released a statement declaring that six chartered flights that rushed the Saudi citizens out of the country were handled properly by the Bush administration.

In a recent interview on NBC’s “Meet The Press,” Prince Bandar said he did not discuss with Bush the need to evacuate Saudi citizens from the U.S. after Sept. 11. He said he asked the FBI for permission.

However, John Iannarelli, the FBI’s spokesman on counterterrorism activities, has denied the FBI had any “role in facilitating these flights one way or another.”

Bill Harvey, a member of the Families Steering Committee, which represents the families of the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks, said the lack of White House cooperation on identifying who authorized the Saudi flights, fit into a pattern.

Pressure from the Families Steering Committee was one of several factors that prompted the White House to agree to the creation of the Sept. 11 commission.

“I stopped being surprised about this a long time ago,” said Harvey, whose wife died in the attack on the World Trade Center. “They’ve not been cooperative. There’s cooperation and then there’s cooperation. Are they doing things under possible threat of subpoena? Yes. Are they actively fulfilling the spirit of the commission’s requests? No.”

“The White House was opposed to the formation of this commission in the first place,” said Harvey. “They did everything to neuter it. Earlier this spring when we tried to get more time for [the commission to complete its report], the White House was an obstacle.”

On the afternoon of Sept. 13, 2001, three Saudi men in their early 20s flew in a Lear jet from Tampa, Fla., to Lexington, Ky., where they boarded a Boeing 747 with Arabic writing on it waiting to take them out of the country. The flight from Tampa to Lexington was first reported in the Tampa Tribune in October 2001.

Earlier that day, the FAA had issued a notice that private aviation was banned and that three private planes that had violated the ban had been forced to land by military aircraft, according to an article late last year in Vanity Fair.

The flight from Tampa to Lexington was one of several flights that Saudi Arabian citizens took in the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11, when the rest of the country was prohibited from flying. Many of the Saudis were members of the Saudi royal family or the bin Laden family.

The New York Times has reported that bin Laden family members were driven or flown under FBI supervision to a secret meeting in Texas and then to Washington, from where they left the country when airports were allowed to open Sept. 14, 2001.
Overall, close to 140 Saudis left the U.S. days after the attacks, even though 15 of the 19 terrorists who carried out the Sept. 11 attacks were Saudi Arabian.

By contrast, prominent Americans such as former President Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore were stranded overseas during the crisis because of the freeze on air travel, Craig Unger wrote in his 2004 book, House of Bush, House of Saud.

Bin Laden’s family has long disassociated itself from Osama bin Laden, head of the al Qaeda terrorist network, which was behind the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. The family has condemned the attacks.

Nevertheless, many critics believe that law enforcement officials should have questioned the family members for any leads they might have been able to provide about bin Laden’s whereabouts, his connection to the attacks, or about possible future attacks.

The commission is scheduled to deliver its final report at the end of July.


http://www.hillnews.com/news/051804/binladen.aspx

Garvald is aware of how his mood changes...He looks around for the remote of the Dvd he's renting (?) from his ex/tenant who walked out on his house/home leaving him the summer's ac/ bill of 215$! After 3 hours wandering around his home, he finds the remote camouflaged among the sheets on his king size matress parked in the center of his large living room. He loves the ceiling fan keeping him cool and comfortable during his hibernation from the world.
His small bouts from his cave are for a daily swim, a chinese buffet or pizza,

lll give myself 5 mins to write this...
while im high
and the sun is still high
in the sky

the number 13...
alot of shit has happened with 13
My Alene was with me for over 13 years since we met on st. pats in okc
what was a long time ago...
but to you it was only yesterday..
and you
wake up from a bad dream...
you look into your reflection...
22 years later...
:(
....do u like your reflection??

Shit with the children of the corn from Chicikasha came to a head on friday the 13th..
evil 8th grade chearleaders all having a slumber party
lets harass that teacher we ran out of town
and then had prank phone calls left on the answering machine!

"tee hee"...
they laugh in glee
till the number shows on caller id

(ill write that essay sometime :)

Had to break up a fight...im thinking should I let Pat,in her narcoleptic state, just fall on top of Buffy, or let Buffy use her street smart feisty little Napoleana tendencies be unleashed on the extra 50 lbs of serious heffer plasty.... I saw blood ...ahead
unless...
Garvald came to the rescue!!
(will be continued)

If everyone on this list put a couple of dollars in an envelop and sent it to
Dennis, it would really help. Dee

If you have listened to KKFI's MorningBuzz on Wednesdays, you may recall when
I had Dennis Kyne and the Veterans for Peace in the studio a couple of months
ago as they trekked across the country. I ran into him on the streets of New
York two weeks ago, shortly before his arrest.

Dennis is a tireless activist for peace and justice, who has been working
very hard to raise awareness of Depleted Uranium, which has been used to coat
bunker-buster bombs, which has left the Iraqi countryside decimated, and has
had catastrophic impact on GI health. (Can you say Gulf War Syndrome?)

I urge you to check out denniskyne.com, his book, "Support the Truth", pass
this email along, and help Dennis with his financial/legal issues if you can.

Peace,

Mike Murphy

From: "dennis kyne"
Date: September 9, 2004 8:43:28 PM GMT+07:00
Subject: I Need Help



Hello All,

I was arrested in New York during the massive sweeps of the RNC.


I am scheduled to reappear in court on October 25th to challenge eight
different counts
and I promise all, I was the loudest person there, but I surely didn't need
to be cited for
acting violently, they buried me into the system and kept me locked up in the
TOMBS,
the Manhattan Detention Center. This system has very few white people
incarcerated; however, the African-Americans in the system loved what was
happening on the streets and taught me how to use the phones and got my ass
back out of jail as fast as I was put in.


Inmates said they appreciated the work of the protesters, fed me anything
around that didn't have meat and said that because of the work we had done,
the jail system, for the very short time we were present, was free of
cockroaches and the dehumanization that we all know goes on in the prisons of
America. I experienced no racism in this facility after being warned by
police my number was up.


So, I currently need to raise money for travel expenses back to New York and
any fees that should need to be covered.


Below is a list of the work I have done in the past couple of months, I have
taken a vow of nonviolence and am insulted that the police are insinuating
that because I am a combat Veteran I MUST be violent. That is the stigma we
veterans live with for our entire post- combat lives, and it is not only
unfair, as most of you know it is untrue.


I fight for equality and justice, and most of all truth, and as a lot of you
know, I operate as somewhat of a Lone Wolf because of the intensity under
which I function. I watched as police were ordered to drop young women,
detain 16-year-old boys, and round up chinese food delivery people with the
only qualification for detention "being on a bike" while the critical mass
folks rode by. It was Martial Law, it is not what I almost died in Combat
for. I watched as people became unhealthy in a bus terminal used to detain
people, and I stayed with an oppressed majority in the TOMBS and learned that
we are all in this together. I am asking anyone who can help me with a
donation of any amount so I can fly to New York and defend myself against
these incredibly loaded charges.


If you see it as within your means, please use:

PO Box 720254
San Jose, CA 95172 USA
Dennis Kyne

Please forward this to anyone or all.
In peace and gratitude,
Dennis





AP PHOTO IN NEW YORK OF DENNIS KYNE
http://it.news.yahoo.com/040829/38/2x3ra.html

DENNIS' ARTICLE ON DEPLETED URANIUM
http://www.ncmonthly.com/My2Cents.html#anchor800227

ASPEN DAILY NEWS WRITES ON DENNIS KYNE
http://www.mindfully.org/Nucs/2004/Gulf-War-Kyne6aug04.htm


BOZEMAN CHRONICLE WRITES ON DENNIS KYNE
http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/articles/2004/08/12/news/uranium.txt


GLENWOOD SPRINGS WRITES ON DENNIS KYNE
http://www.postindependent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?
AID=/20040815/VALLEYNEWS/108150002/0/FRONTPAGE&rs=2

IDAHO OBSERVER WRITES ON DENNIS KYNE
http://proliberty.com/observer/20040410.htm
Visit www.greensofkc.org! If you have a message to share with KC
greens, send it to deeberry@kc.rr.com.
To unsubscribe, send a message to updates-request@greensofkc.org with
unsubscribe in the subject line.

posted by Garvald  # 9/13/2004 12:10:00 PM 1 Comments Links to this post

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

Friday, Saturday
SEPTEMBER 17+18
2 days of peace, camping and live music with:
2 stages, 8 bands, 50 vendors, 1000's of people
at ZOE
28 miles south of SALEM, MO - Shannon County
573-858-3333

RAIN OR SHINE - ALL AGES WELCOME - CAMPING ONSITE
50 VENDORS - SWIMMING - FLOAT TRIPS
HIKING TRAILS - BONFIRES - DRUM CIRCLES
PRO STEREO SOUND, STAGING & LIGHT SHOWS

FEATURING 2 NIGHTS OF
THE SCHWAG - Grateful Dead Tribute
with
PHISH TRIBUTE - Helping Phriendly Band
BEATLES TRIBUTE - Pepperland
RIPPLE EFFECT from Nebraska
MADAHOOCHI from St. Louis
SPEAKEASY from Springfield, MO
MICHAEL KELSEY
GREEN MOUNTAIN GRASS
Heather Barth, Open Mic & more...


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ALL AGES ARE WELCOME
PETS ARE WELCOME - Dogs must be on leashes
Gates open on Thursday September 16 at high noon
Camping is first come, first serve. No reservations.
There is a shower house and bathrooms on-site.
There will be food & beverages for sale on-site.
No beer or alcohol will be for sale on the property - B.Y.O.B.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TICKET PRICES:
$35 per person for entire weekend - includes camping for Thursday - Monday
1 day tickets are only available for the Saturday show for $20
THE TICKET PRICE CHANGES AT 7 A.M. EACH DAY (not at midnight)
Ticket price includes the cost of camping, parking, concerts, and Missouri sales tax.
ALL TICKETS CAN BE PURCHASED AT THE GATE
------------------------------------------------------------------------

DETAILS:

VENUE UPDATE : Zoe has new and improved roads since the first Schwagstock of the season. There are also two new shaded camping sections.

SCHWAGSTOCK PHOTOS FROM ZOE 2004


Suggested Items to bring: tent, sleeping bags and/or many blankets, flashlights and/or lanterns, lawnchairs, blanket for the lawn during the show, swimwear, river shoes, food and drink to consume, RAIN GEAR (just in case), sunscreen, party favors, acoustic guitars, frisbees, hacky sacs, bicycles, etc. There will be a group drum circle after the show each night, so please bring congas, djembes, hand drums, and other percussion instruments to join in - all are invited to participate.

TAPING: Audio and video recording is permitted and encouraged. A stereo soundboard feed will be available for all audio tapers. Electricity will be provided for all audio and video tapers by the soundbourd area. Audio tapers should bring RCA cables to patch in. You can audio record on any format you want - cassette, mini-disk, DAT, whatever - we will patch you in or you can bring audience microphones and record live in crowd. There will NO extra charge for taping - it is free.


Extrie Special:
Please make sure you bring sufficient padding to lay on in your tent. One blanket will not be enough. Bring an air mattress or a thermorest if you have one. Several sleeping bags or many blankets will ensure a comfortable nights sleep, plus it might get a little cold at night. (Several people in years past have thought they could get through the weekend with just a tent and one blanket. They ended up being cold at night and found that sleeping on the ground in a tent is not as soft as their beds at home;-)

Please be safe and cautious on the trip down and the way back home. Have everything secure and DO NOT consume alcohol on the way down. Obey all speed limits and stop signs. WEAR YOUR SEAT-BELT!!! Have your car insurance card up to date as well as the license plates. We want everyone to have a completely positive Schwagstock experience.

RULES:
NO UN-AUTHORIZED VENDING
NO NITROUS OXIDE
NO GLASS BEER BOTTLES ALLOWED ON PROPERTY
NO GOLF CARS
NO EXOTIC ANIMALS
NO ATV OR OFF-ROAD MOTORCYCLES
NO BAD ATTITUDES
NO UNDER-AGE DRINKING
NO ILLICIT DRUG USE OR SALES
NO FIREWORKS

THESE RULES WILL BE ENFORCED - VIOLATORS MAY BE EJECTED FROM THE PROPERTY

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DIRECTIONS:

FROM ST. LOUIS :
44 west (80 miles) to a left on Hwy 72 east in Rolla at exit #186 to a right on hwy 19 south in Salem, MO. It is the first left after crossing the "Sinking Creek" bridge 28 miles south of Salem, MO.

FROM KANSAS CITY :
70 east to 63 south in Columbia, MO. Then take 63 south to 72 east (at Rolla 1 1/2 miles from 44). Follow 72 into the town of Salem. Make a right on 19 south in Salem and go 28 miles and make the first left after the "Sinking Creek" bridge.

FROM OKLAHOMA :
44 east to 72 south in Rolla, MO. Make a right on 19 south in Salem and go 28 miles and make the first left after the "Sinking Creek" bridge.

FROM LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS :
67 north for 60 miles to to 167 north (exit #55) for 70 miles. Then a right on US 62/US 412 for 10 miles to a left on 63 north for 20 miles. Then turn right on Hwy 19 north and go about 70 miles to a right into the campground entrance before or after the "Sinking Creek" bridge.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LIVE MUSIC SCHEDULE:

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17
MAINSTAGE
5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. : GREEN MOUNTAIN GRASS
7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. : PHISH TRIBUTE - Helping Phriendly Band
9:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. : THE SCHWAG - 2 sets
12:30 a.m. - Drum Circle at Bonfire

STAGE 2
3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. : OPEN MIC with Heather Barth
5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. : KKID LIVE RADIO BROADCAST
7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. : MICHAEL KELSEY
12:30 a.m. to 4:20 a.m. : SPEAKEASY

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 18
MAINSTAGE
4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. : T.B.A.
5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. : MICHAEL KELSEY
7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. : BEATLES TRIBUTE - Pepperland
9:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. : THE SCHWAG- 2 sets
12:30 a.m. - Drum Circle at Bonfire

STAGE 2
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. : OPEN MIC with Heather Barth
3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. : GREEN MOUNTAIN GRASS
5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. : RIPPLE EFFECT
7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. : PHISH TRIBUTE - Helping Phriendly Band
12:30 a.m. to 4:20 a.m. : MADAHOOCHI

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
STAGE 2
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. : B.D.A. PROJECT
12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. : RIPPLE EFFECT
STONE LODGE :
9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. : Acoustic Jam with Schwag band members

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All questions about this event can be directed to 573-858-3333

The Blade's Jim Drew wrote: "For those of us with the 'limited access'
credentials that couldn't get us on the convention floor, the streets were an
option. And the guerrilla reporters found by far the most important and
interesting story. In the age of international terrorism, the patriotic right
of political dissent in the United States is in crisis."

That was from the last article cut and pasted from the comment box.
Bubba, Muffy, Lillian, Jae and five of my other readers need to see how Bush is taking away so many of our freedoms (esp free speech!) The other day after a fitful night sleep and getting kicked out by Muffy, I decided to check out the Bublican get together at the Lee's Summit High School. I asked a cop if I could see the speech with out a ticket and then a nice Republican gave me a ticket! The sad thing is so many are nice and so poorly informed :() Walking through a couple tiers of security. I almost felt like I was in the airport going to another country!
They asked me to take off my sweater so they could see if I had something that disagreed with neo conservatives on the back of my shirt. They will not allow protests at his speeches but Kerry believes in free speech so you don't get arrested if you heckle or lose your jobs like a teacher and others that disagreed with Skippy Bush!

I will elaborate and of course edit this little essay of seeing little George w. about 50 yards from me. I know he has many of the symptoms of ADD but I wouldn't vote for myself as president. God forbid! (the Republican God, of course!) Beside almost acting dyslexic when he tries to read something and then you notice he forgets to put on the Connecticut Texan good ole boy drawl! He looks away from what Cousin Karl wrote for him for homework last night, and then he sees if he can remember what to say. He goes extra heavy on the Bubba Texan voice especially when he was emphasizing a lie!

(this will be continued later when I can find the notes that I missplaced)

My older brother was working in the American Express building across from the two towers. They evacuated the building not knowing what happened as they were not watching TV's. When he went outside, he saw the 2nd plane hit the 2nd tower. He did not stay but took the ferry across the river and saw the towers crash from across the river.

I was able to get a hold of him that afternoon. I was so happy that he was ok. Since that time, I have often gone into depression realizing how quickly life can end. I don't know how I could have handled it if the plane hit his building instead already having dealt with the deaths of my mother and my girlfriend of 13 years (yes, Muffy, she was my common law wife so that judgemental people wouldn't throw stones!)

We are survivors and the hardest thing to do sometimes is to go on with our lives. So much trauma takes an effect on our psyche! Then very often we feel guilty about surviving, about doing things differently with the ones we loved. We are sorry that we didn't do more fun things with our best friends, best buddies, best parents, best lovers and we can never talk to them again except when we pray or feel that they might still with us!

As survivors, we are left with a big hole and emptiness. I am very scared of all the repercussions from us "paying them back" with all the innocent lives we are taking for a needless war in Iraq. All these survivors could grow up to be very angry continuing this needless violence. It is a shame that our president is acting as if God is on our side. This war-loving "Christian" chicken hawk is pitting fundamentalist against fundamentalist and yet we have the same god. Religion has caused so much bloodshed! Please God, let there not be another 4 years of this very scary administration!


(to be continued)

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)


Harriet, I was at Hudstones tonight and Jae said you were offended.
I am sorry if I offended you from what I wrote.
This is what you wrote:

Harriet: I'm just wondering what you think about this . . . does it take intelligence to realize that people are annnoyed by you . . . not you personally, of course. . . but generally speaking.

I wrote:
Harriet...how are you annoyed...by criticizing redneck ways or using humor??...have you met me?



The way you wrote this, I thought that you were saying that I annoy some people.
For some reason when I pull up that post about labor day in KC, I am getting some wierd type of garble. My response was not meant for you personally and I know that you can make mistakes with typos as far as having 3 n's.
My response was meant for angry close minded folks that get upset when an opinion differs from their's. I have a very dry sense of humor and sometimes people take it personally.

I am upset at people in glass houses and tinted windows that love to insult knowing that they want to be immune from personal attacks themselves so they hide and stay anonymous.
I had a discussion with the gentleman that had handed me the bullet. He told me that I write bullshit but left upset not wanting to listen to my response. He said that the bullet was not meant as a threat but it was meant for me if I wanted to use the bullet on myself. WOW, that's mighty caucasian of you, Larry! I am glad that you told your friend what I had said about the very profane name calling.

I enjoyed having the beers at Hudstones and talking with everyone especially Jae!

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

Dear Bubba wood or whatever; your lack of courage causes you to write anonymously. Regardless, you continue to harass me with personal comments after I've asked you not to and to keep the personal profane words out of it. In response, as I have learned to deal with angry adolescents, I will respond with kindness and maybe help you learn. Unfortunately, it's hard to teach an old bubba new tricks. Let's see if I can help you! :)

For your benefit, since your private school teacher never taught you how to write properly, learn better vocabulary, proper grammar (you spelled it grammer), and of course how to spell, I will take the time to help you without pay.

Let's look at your childish middle school essay. Some of my special ed kids write better than you!
Here is your comment:
"Hey pretzel dick, you talk shit about good grammer and pronunciation, yet anyone with a brain can see your a fucking moron that can't spell or complete a sentence structure."

First of all that is an emotionally disturbed comment and that's why I prefer not sitting with you and your concern for the size of my penis. I hope that you can go to a state where you won't be arrested for marrying one of your less endowed partners. Grammar has an A and not an E.

"Hell, all you have to do is read some of your post to this web site to tell that. Also, your invisible friends seem to be pretty fucking stupid to, "
to in this case has another O.

"but maybe that's just you rubbing off on them. As far as below the belt tactics how about this one skippy"

And actually, I wouldn't send you to the principal writing "skippy"! Are you working on toning down your name calling? By the way, are you into pretzels and peanut butter?

Also, my dear Bubba, think about your cut and pasting! This was at the end of the article. How will you explain these last 3 paragraphs from correspondent, Kelly Shannon.:
"Bush joined the Texas Air National Guard in 1968, serving more than a year on active Air Force duty while being trained to fly F-102A jets. He was honorably discharged from the Guard in October 1973 and left the Air Force Reserves in May 1974.

The first four months of 1972 are at the beginning of a controversial period in Bush's Guard service. After taking his last flight in April 1972, Bush went for six months without showing up for any training drills. In September 1972 he received permission to transfer to an Alabama Guard unit so he could work on a political campaign there.

That May, Bush also skipped a required yearly medical examination. In response, his commanders grounded Bush on Aug. 1, 1972."

Think about who you should call "skippy". Does that mean that you skip?

---

Associated Press Correspondent Kelley Shannon contributed to this report from Austin, Texas.

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)


I have been very concerned with the below the
belt tactics of the Bush campaign and this article makes it very clear why.
I urge all of you to read it and forward it on.


Thursday,
September 09, 2004
Featured Views

Printer Friendly Version E-Mail This Article
Published on Tuesday, September 7, 2004 by CommonDreams.org
Bush Family Wounds America Below The Belt Line
by Thom Hartmann

In 1988, the Bush campaign planted a lie in the media that Michael Dukakis
had suffered from depression after losing an election for governor. According
to Susan Estrich, his campaign manager, it cost Dukakis six points in the
polls. A Bush family friend planted another lie that Dukakis' wife, Kitty,
had once burned a flag at a demonstration - and Dukakis took another hit in
the polls.

The Bush family is at it again, with the now-well-documented lies told from
the pulpit - er, podium - of the Republican National Convention, including
lies told directly to the American people by George W. Bush himself. While
many of these lies, like Bush's assurance that he was looking out for seniors
when the next day would see the largest hike in Medicare premiums in history,
were of the Bush-praising variety, the most toxic were those that either lied
about John Kerry and his record, or implied that Democrats (and, implicitly,
Greens and progressive independents) don't value their nation or its defense.

Which presents the Kerry campaign with the same conundrum the Dukakis,
McCain, and Gore campaigns faced when confronted by Bush family lies - how to
respond?

There's an old concept about fighting fair in relationships that has to do
with what therapists call "the belt line." When you get to know somebody,
you
discover the things you can say that will irritate, bother, or even anger
them. But you also learn the things you can say that will emotionally wound
them. When people use those emotionally wounding things in order to win a
fight, it's referred to as "hitting below the belt line."

Good marriage counselors teach couples never to hit below the belt line. The
reason is simple: when a person has repeatedly been hit below the belt line,
the wounds don't easily heal. Over time, if the "below the belt line" hits
are repeated, the wounds will cut so deep that trust is lost, self-confidence
and commitment disintegrates, and the relationship is doomed, and the
recipients of the hits can be devastated - wounded beyond easy repair. The
most common responses to being hit below the belt line are to endure the
wounds or leave the relationship. But some people respond by hitting back
below the other person's emotional belt line. This, too, is the death knell
of a relationship.

Today, John Kerry faces the dilemma of a person who's been repeatedly hit
below the belt line. How he responds will not only shape the outcome of this
election, but may also determine how badly the psyche of the American people
will be wounded.

Consider, for example, the new Swift Boat ads - probably the most powerful of
the untruthful Republican below-the-belt-line efforts so far this election
season.

In 1971, a young John Kerry testified before congress. "A few months ago in
Detroit," he said, "we had an investigation in which over one hundred and
fifty honorably discharged - many, highly decorated - veterans testified to
war crimes committed in Southeast Asia. Not isolated incidents, but crimes
committed on a day-to-day basis with the full awareness of officers at all
levels of command.

"It's impossible," Kerry continued in his testimony, "to describe to you
exactly what happened in Detroit, the emotions of the moment, the feelings of
the men who were reliving their experiences in Vietnam, but they did. They
relived the absolute horror of what this country, in a sense, made them do.
They told the stories of times that they had personally raped, cut off ears,
cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and
turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at
civilians, razed villages in a fashion reminiscent of Genghis Kahn, shot
cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the
countryside of South Vietnam, in addition to the normal ravage of war and the
normal and very particular ravaging which is done by the applied bombing
power of this country."

There was a reason for this hearing, Kerry said, and it was why he was
bringing the testimony of these 150 Vietnam veterans to Congress.

"We called this investigation the Winter Soldier Investigation," he
said. "The term 'winter soldier' is a play on words of Thomas Paine's in
1776
when he spoke of the 'sunshine patriots and the summertime soldiers who
deserted at Valley Forge because the going was rough. And we who've come here
to Washington have come here because we feel that we have to be Winter
Soldiers now. We could come back to this country and we could be quiet. We
could hold our silence, we could not tell what went on in Vietnam.

"But we feel, because of what threatens this country - the fact that the
crimes threaten it, not reds and not redcoats, but the crimes that threaten
it - that we have to speak out." (You can listen to or download the MP3 audio
here.)

Kerry's testimony was not a blanket condemnation of all veterans as the Swift
Boat ads suggest. Nor was it an accusation against our soldiers as the
Republicans chant like a mantra.

It was, instead, the report of an investigation that he had helped lead into
the consequences of trying to fight a guerilla war against the citizens of a
nation who viewed American soldiers as occupiers and aggressors, rather than
liberators. That view of American soldiers by the nationalistic citizens of
Vietnam fueled the ferocity of their battle against an army they perceived as
invaders - invaders who ultimately killed between 2 and 3 million Vietnamese -
and led American forces to often ferocious and brutal responses, often
perceived by both officers and soldiers as necessities for survival.

Just as when John Kerry, as a United States Senator, investigated the Bank of
Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) and exposed a vast criminal
syndicate with tentacles into both the Bush family and members of his own
Democratic Party, his Winter Soldier investigation uncovered troubling
truths. Like his BCCI investigation, the Winter Soldier investigation
produced both painful consequences to malefactors of great wealth and
political power, and helped cleanse us of a cancerous and corrupt wound. And
just like with his investigation of BCCI, Kerry's Winter Soldier
investigation produced wealthy Republican enemies.

Those enemies have now chosen to fight back by striking Kerry "below the
belt," taking his words out of context and twisting their meaning. They seek
to pit veteran against veteran, non-veterans against Vietnam era veterans,
and turn the attention away from the criminal actions of LBJ, Nixon,
Kissinger, and other perpetrators of Vietnam, and on to the man who raised
the questions and exposed the unpleasant truths.

How can he respond? This isn't a fight between two people, where the wounded
party can simply walk away - these scurrilous charges are being made by
wealthy associates of the Bush family in the most public of venues - the
nation's airwaves. To try to suppress them by going to court and challenging
their untruthfulness will be fruitless - it won't produce results until long
after the elections are over. And if Kerry were to hit back below the belt -
for example by taking some of George W. Bush's past statements out of context
and twisting them into a new and venomous meaning - he would become his
enemy, joining the ancient and evil tribe of what psychiatrist M. Scott Peck
so accurately and poignantly called "The People of the Lie."

Bush partisans try to deflect our attention from this below-the-belt attack
by pointing out the millions of dollars spent on above-the-belt (e.g.
accurate and undisputed) attack ads run against Bush over the past months,
citing his record on job creation, outsourcing, the disaster of Iraq, and the
like. But as we all know - usually from painful experience - below-the-belt
attacks are fundamentally different. There is no moral equivalence, and to
claim that there is - as Karen Hughes did recently on CNN, and both Laura
Bush and George H.W. Bush did just before the Republican National Convention -
is only to compound the evil of the lie.

The other problem this sort of attack produces is that negative campaign
advertisements do not have as their goal to produce votes for a particular
candidate - instead, their singular goal is to suppress the vote, to produce
a "they're all bums" response among voters. Thus, American voter
participation is at shocking lows.

While America has seen many hard-hitting campaigns - dating back to 1799 when
an associate of John Adams hired a newspaperman to print (true) stories
alleging that his opponent Thomas Jefferson had been sleeping with his
widow's half-sister, his slave Sally Hemmings - only very rarely have they
been so grounded in basic deception and, thus, truly below-the-belt hits.
Unfortunately, as the elder Bush learned with Lee Atwater's abovementioned
efforts and his Willie Horton ads against Dukakis, they work, because they
leave the victim with so few rebuttal options.

So how to respond?

Simple: tell the truth. And do it with righteous anger, as Joseph Welch did
to Joe McCarthy on June 9, 1954, exploding another house of cards built on
lies and bully tactics. (MP3 clip here) And tell the truth not just on behalf
of the candidate, but on behalf of all of the American people and our
democratic republic.

This sort of response will work most powerfully because the real victim is
not so much Kerry as it is you and me, the American electorate, We the
People. We - Republicans, Democrats, Progressives, Greens, Independents - are
being wounded by the Bush lies, as is the vital and precious electoral
process that generations of Americans have fought and died to defend.

We the People - through Kerry, the DNC, or third party 527s, or simply by
spreading the truth one-to-another - must right this horrible wrong. We must
expose the fundamental evil of Big Lie techniques in politics.

We must hold up to the light of truth John Kerry's noble and courageous 1971
attempt to stop an unjust war and heal the veterans who had been criminally
ordered to commit atrocities by civilian powers in the White House and
Department of Defense. And we must hold up to the light of truth the people
and motivations behind these morally criminal political smears.

It could take the form of a simple ad that plays the first few sentences of
Kerry's testimony before Congress, and points out his courage to investigate
that, then BCCI, and, in April 1986, his chairing the Senate subcommittee on
the Iran-Contra hearings. It could even bluntly point out the lies in the
entire series of Swift Boat ads and other Bush statements, and then - like
Joseph Welch - ask Americans if we will continue to tolerate lies in what
should be honest, democratic debate.

"Whenever the people are well-informed," Thomas Jefferson noted in a letter
to Dr. Price in 1789, "they can be trusted with their own government.
Whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, they may be
relied on to set them to rights."

If the Kerry campaign and the DNC and the corporate-owned media are all,
ultimately, unwilling to discuss the truth of the Bush family tactics, then
we must do so ourselves.

The result - regardless of the outcome of this election - will be a healing
of the democratic process. It will also salve the psyches of Americans who
have been brutalized by Osama Bin Laden, by an incompetent administration
that played right into his hand by elevating him to international prominence
(and then let him escape), and by repeated lies and smears that do as much
violence to American democracy as did 15 Saudis with box cutters that
horrible day three years ago.

We must help America become, as Jefferson said, "well-informed," and, thus,
heal our national psyche from the wounds inflicted on it these past decades
by the Bush family. It begins with you and me: Pass it along.

Thom Hartmann (thom at thomhartmann.com) is a Project Censored Award-winning
best-selling author and host of a nationally syndicated daily progressive
talk show. www.thomhartmann .com His most recent books are "The Last Hours
of
Ancient Sunlight," "Unequal Protection: The Rise of Corporate Dominance and
the Theft of Human Rights," "We The People: A Call To Take Back America,"
and "What Would Jefferson Do?: A Return To Democracy."

Thoughts fell from my mind
and drifted like cottonwood fluff
up through the air
and into the sky

wound through the lace
of leaves and sunlight on stones
came the echo of you
in a small butterfly

your voice in the rushes
like droplets of rain and waterfalls
spun me to infinity
and left me out to dry

time stands open now
like the doors of an empty mine
all the stones have fallen in
where unborn dreams still lie

a raspy cricket calls
to the moon of dusty yellow weeds
a jaded wind intently blows
cloud gods across the sky

anonymous

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

Main Entry: douche
Pronunciation: 'düsh
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Italian doccia, from docciare to douche, from doccia water pipe, probably back-formation from doccione conduit, from Latin duction-, ductio means of conveying water, from ducere to lead —more at TOW
Date: 1766
1 a : a jet or current especially of water directed against a part or into a cavity of the body b : an act of cleansing with a douche
2 : a device for giving douches
3 : British : a rude awakening
- douche verb

Bubba, please expand your vocabulary and refrain from personal attacks with your limited personal attack words such as "douche bag and dip shit"!

Main Entry: [1]shit
Pronunciation: 'shit, interjectionally also 'shE-&t
Function: noun
Etymology: (assumed) Middle English, from Old English scite; akin to Old English -scItan to defecate
Date: circa 1585
1 : usually vulgar : EXCREMENT
2 : usually vulgar : an act of defecation
3 : usually vulgar : NONSENSE, CRAP
4 : usually vulgar : any of several intoxicating or narcotic drugs; especially : HEROIN
5 : usually vulgar : DAMN 2
6 : usually vulgar : a worthless, offensive, or detestable person
- shit·ty /'shi-tE/ adjective usually vulgar :

Pronunciation Key

Everyone that sees this website (of course you are the most popular fan, Bubba) will see your very limited vocabulary and that you cannot write on your own beyond a sophomore in a public school but
went to a private school as many Rich Republican children do!
Your cuss words that you use and your obvious anger and personal attacks give you no credibility. Others see your comments and see how stupid you are! The fact that you might informally know me from seeing me at a pub (but you are not courageous enough to admit who you are) and that you like to get personal brings you to a level of the gutter. Your language only reminds me of the emotionally disturbed middle school students that I have taught for several years. I am sorry that you like to get down to gutter level lower than the mudslinging that your president gives!

What private school is it that teaches such a limited vocabulary?
Bubba, please limit your personal attacks and keep to the subject!

posted by Garvald  # 9/10/2004 02:47:00 PM 1 Comments Links to this post

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

This is a very rough draft and often I feel like a loser esp if your best friend calls you that WHEN I couldnt find my cell phone! Yes, thats right that I dont have a job and at this moment in time, Im not ready to go back to work...my biggest worry is not having socialized medicine and not having a good major medical (that would be solved if I got off my gluteus maximus and filled out some apps for employment)...
but I want to enjoy myself on the short time that I have on this planet in the body that I am in now...
thinking that there is only such a finite time and that nothing is permanent...after 9/11 Im sure that many of us are scared of the future and about nothing permanent esp if we have another 4 years of this president who uses religion to steal elections! (DONT GET ME STARTED!)
this is a very rough draft, so dont worry about the incomplete sentences, Jae! :(
(to be continued and edited)

Now I need to get out of here before I get complaints from Muffys darling daughter that Im here! :(

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

I'll try to write this essay with a minimum of run on sentences, Jae! It’s a gorgeous day and its hard to believe I've lived and worked in KC for a year just to get out of the comfort zone and realize life outside of Oklahoma! Time flies by so much more rapidly as one ages and I just want to savor it and do all the things that I want to do but I just wish that we had more of a socialized medicine system so that unemployed folks or self employed people could just go in and pay a minimum 20$ to see the Dr. Many as myself worry about the bills and so they don’t go visit when they should. I believe there could easily be a system where everyone could pitch in and that way be covered, but big business and the powerful medical lobby would not stand for that!
Im looking outside of Muffy's upstair's window at her forest of trees. I am still wanting to be good to myself and really enjoy the last weekend of summer even though it really goes until the 22nd. That gives me 3 more weeks! I want to relax and decide if I am ready to go back to the grind of teaching angry students with the possibility of dealing with insecure female administrators like I had in the Kansas City, Kansas school district. When I have had good supportive principals in the past, I could handle the problem children so much more easily. The job is so much easier when a teacher has a unified front with the parents, teachers and administration. None of that was happening at the middle school I was at. Now, I have heard that 2 teachers have quit because of the power trip this lady is on. It is hard to believe all the things that were going on including hiring a janitor to serve as "parent liaison" when he was just there to spy on and harass the teachers (including sexual harassment).

When I was able to work with the parents and avoid the principal undermining authority, we had an effective way of using "tough love" to help the child understand that he/she would not be allowed to have disrespectful behavior.
The parents that worked with me and keeping the discipline in the classroom and at home were able to have significant results in improving behavior!

When and if I decide to go back to teaching, it will have to be with at a school that is not claustrophobic (has windows to the outside) and has a principal that is not meddling and only supports the ED program in the classroom.
(I would like to have input from other teachers and principals)
These next few months, I am thinking about traveling around the country and other countries even to substitute and find out what type of schools have the best programs for discipline and then academics. Students will not learn until they are aware of their behavior!
(to be continued)

Wasn't sure how to adress this essay as if I might talk to some people that might be concerned about my itinerary...
I thought that I might talk about the epipheny with Dr. Dave and the peace pipe! :)...very exciting revelations about Dave conversatin with my other neighbor due east of me about:
Garvald's change after his "wife" or common law gf passed over to the other side...
how Garvald has become so attached to his house and cannot leave for long
...how the paranoia sets in for Garvald as to how often the good dr.
conversate with all the neighbors on the street...

Dave answering with his duties as village social chairman...
hoping to learn how not to make it so obvious about dominating conversations ...lol (had to put that there in case of occassional rages!)

Garvald told of his bathroom breaks with Buddha opening up to the page on how Buddhists have to accept emptiness in the universe
before moving on from a deluded mind that believes in any permanence.
Garvald brought him over the book to borrow over a peaceful pipe!
He told him in a mentor to "grasshopper" mode the section on emptiness
come back from my quest to find the actual "bible of buddhism"


(this will be continued with the necessary un cannabized edits!)

Read, enjoy, and feel free to leave comments but please keep the personal cuss words to a minimum. Thanks :)

Sometimes, I wish my wizard or wizardess was out there like some lost Buddhist priest hidden in the mountains in some Shangri La somewhere on this small spaceship earth to figure it all out...the reason for life here coming from a drop of water...

Where else in the universe could there possibly be intelligent life?? I believe there is intelligence outside of Oklahoma and have met witnesses to intelligent life that we dont know about. As far as intelligence, it is a very misunderstood word that causes more controversy and argument as what is lacking in the way we process or the way we choose to remain ignorant of the truth>

In regards to dear Harriet:

"I'm just wondering what you think about this . . . does it take intelligence to realize that people are annnoyed by you . . . not you personally, of course. . . but generally speaking."

I presume Harriet is a pseudonym but I am so happy to have a comment, albeit negative, and it not be listed anonymously as the American fear of strangers brought on by TV and the media causes people to worry about what monsters might be lurking in the jungle out there! Have you watched Michael Moore's Columbine movie about how we have far more killing in this country than we do in Canada and most nations in the world. To some pro life, pro gun people it is intelligent to go to reelect a president with a low IQ. The fact that he pronounces words without intelligence or deliberate bastardization of the English language appeals to our "Bubba" vote which gets the Nascar, and redneck vote which will easily sway the election provided Bubba will get off the couch and away from his cheap domestic beer to get out and vote. (Now, Harriet, this might annoy half of the population and for that I am not sorry, if it will increase your "intelligence", and maybe not use 3 n's in annoyed. By increasing your intelligence, in this sense, you might become more aware of your behavior and why you are becoming annoyed at people that might have a different perspective than you. Pubs in Oklahoma might be 90% gung ho George W. (wacko) Bush and if it takes a nucular (nuclear) war to wipe out the heathens, "bring 'em on"! (it is amazing how his wife called him a "warrior" when Kerry was risking his neck for a stupid war where we had no business in , George Jr. was gallivanting and doing drugs with his buds for 3 years AWOL in the national guard!

If there was anything else from this website that personally annoyed you, Harriet, please let me know. This is all a rough draft for a book that hopefully will annoy enough people to maybe start questioning their own behavior and beliefs before they throw stones!

Have a nice day! I have to mow the lawn and I needed to vent. And thank you for helping me with what to write this essay about. I look forward to more comments especially about the format, content or writing of this website. If they are personal why not send an email to me?